The Cold North Seas
by LadyHuntressOfBedlam
Summary: The Seven are on a quest to find another camp of Demigods in the north to face a deadly foe. Just another day in the life of The Seven. [Norse story, rated T for language, set after The Blood of Olympus]
1. Leo

Leo banged his head against his headboard in frustration before he forced himself to get up. Not that that did any good. He had things to do and now he would just be lovesick _and_ have a splitting headache. Of course ,it had been too good to be true. Not that he could really blame Calypso for ending things with him. Not that she had really exactly definitively ended things. She had been open to starting things with him up again someday.

Some day.

He had had a perfectly good and perfect girlfriend and she wanted time to explore. Who knew how many other guys she was 'exploring' with.

He shook his head, making him shake himself out of it. He couldn't blame her. She had been trapped on that stupid island for gods knew how long. Still, he couldn't help but feel like he had been given the best and most awesome Christmas present and then someone just yanked it away and said 'Oops, never mind!' and sent it on a whirlwind adventure to see the world without him!

It wasn't fair. But since when was his life ever fair?

He couldn't think too much about Calypso, no matter how much it killed him. No, he and his friends had another quest. Leo was the seventh single wheel again. Yippee. Frank and Hazel, Piper and Jason, Percy and Annabeth. Of course. Hazel had asked him if Calypso was coming and he had to quickly lie, letting her know that she was going on a road trip. It wasn't EXACTLY a lie. It just…wasn't the whole truth. It was cool that his friends were willing to bend the rules of Rachel Dare's prophecy so he wouldn't feel like a seventh wheel. He appreciated that at least. He was just really happy that he wasn't going on this quest alone. He was also happy that everyone wasn't clinging on him and smothering him in pity. That would be a nightmare. Still, news of the breakup would come out to his friends

When he left the cabin and started for Thalia's tree he was greeted by a mass of celestial bronze and a few small jets of fire. He beamed at the automaton. At least he still had his favorite machine. "Hey Festus!" he greeted the beast happily. "You ready for our quest?"

The dragon clicked and whizzed in agreement. Leo smiled and patted the dragon on the head. At least Festus was coming too. Sure, the dragon wasn't as good as a living, breathing, real girlfriend, but he would have to do. He headed through the camp, his dragon at his heels.

As he climbed the hill he forced himself to clear his head and focus on the task at hand. Their quest was of a more…diplomatic nature. Naturally, Piper was taking the lead on this one. All he knew about the quest was that Rachel's prophecy stated that 'The Seven' will go on some boring diplomatic quest to make peace with another sect of demigods'. Now THAT was what confused Leo. Everything was good with the Romans…there couldn't be another group of demigods, right? Leo regretted not sitting in on the meeting with the others the night before. He had had to tune up the Argo 3 for the journey though. Piper had told him that he would have a part to play. That probably meant something about the quest really depended on him. Despite how nice it was to be needed as a part of the team he didn't like being the 'make it or break it' factor.

He shook his head, reluctant to think about it. Piper had promised to explain in further detail today on the ship so he wouldn't be left out. He'd have plenty of time to dwell on everything.

He arrived at the crest of the hill to discover he wasn't the first one there. Annabeth was pouring over something in her computer, which was currently in the shape of a tablet while Percy hung around her shoulders looking half asleep. Piper was pacing back and forth nervously and muttering a bit to herself. Jason was sipping some coffee and leaning against a tree. Hazel and Frank weren't there yet, though.

"Hello my subjects!" Leo greeted them all, his usually playful and joking tone in his voice.

The return he got was less zealous and sleepier. Not that he could blame them. They'd had a long night. This quest was a last minute one, not that that was a surprise.

"Are Hazel and Frank with you?" Piper asked as she checked her watch.

"Uh…no, it's just me and Festus," Leo answered as he patted the dragon's neck. Festus whirred in agreement. He turned to the dragon and said, "You wanna get in the ship, buddy?" Festus clicked a few times before climbing over past the ridge and crawling into the ship. There was a compartment for him where he could slip into and become the ships head again, but his release was as simple as the touch of a button, just in case they needed the dragon to charbroil some monsters at a second's notice.

Once Festus settled in the bow of the ship Hazel and Frank arrived, hand in hand a bit out of breath. "Sorry we're late," Hazel said before Frank could speak.

Piper shook her head, "It's fine. We should be on the way though. Leo, is it okay if we talk while you fly?"

"Sure thing, Beauty Queen," Leo insisted as they all made for the ship. Considering how much he was hurting over the split with Calypso it was surprisingly easy to act like everything was all right. It was easier to do that than to break down. He wasn't in the mood to fix anything but machines.

The Argo 3 was really a thing of beauty. Sure, a lot of it was based off the Argo 2, but he had made it bigger and better. What was the point of having to remake something if improvements couldn't be made to it? The rooms were all bigger, the engines were more powerful, it could simultaneously detect monsters in the air, underground, AND under water (he wasn't take any chances with creepy catfish looking monsters again), and, best of all, it had a fully grown dragon in the hull. When he was attached to the ship Festus acted like an interface, like he had before the Argo 2 sort of…died. When Festus wasn't on board the interface came up on a screen next to the control panel. It had been months of hard work, but it had totally paid off.

Everyone readied themselves for liftoff and once his friends were all ready he did his magic and the ship burst to life. Before long, they were in the air. Jason was up at the bow of the ship, probably happy to be in the air, when Piper put a hand on his shoulder and moved over to Leo. He smiled when she approached. He loved that girl. Not like that! Gods no. He loved Piper like a sister, which meant that was basically what she was. "Hey, how're we doing?" she asked once she was at his side.

"We literally just took off so we're all good," Leo answered. "Now, you gonna tell me about this quest thing? Where are we supposed to be heading?"

She smiled, "We're heading north." He nodded and got the ship ready to get on the right course as she continued. "So the prophecy isn't all that clear, but here it is." She cleared her throat and began to recite "' _Into the icy sea above stands a foe that must be met by love'_ we figured that meant I lead the quest." She shook her head, like she was reminding herself to not get distracted before continuing, " _The Seven must take to the seas far north and find a camp like their own come forth. When all is lost and the end is near the hands of fire make the path veer clear. To the start of war or the fall of all the beast that holds the earth face rebirth. If they prevail friends may be made that day or else the serpent will crush the world and none shall stay. To Valhalla or to Asphodel the end must be met and the way be clear."_

Leo frowned. He didn't know what Valhalla was, but he knew about the Fields of Asphodel. Plus the hands of fire being what makes the path clear. He didn't know what the prophecy meant, not like that was a surprise. The Oracle of Delphi could never just give a plain answer. Though he had his doubts, and was uneasy about it, he couldn't help but be curious about the camp like their own. Sure, the romans had been shocking enough, but was there another camp? Other demigods? The thought was making his brain hurt. "So we have to save the world…again?"

Piper shrugged, "Looks like it."

"Just another day in the life of Leo," he said nonchalantly.

Piper smiled, but it faltered a bit. Something was a bit…off. "Are you alright Leo?"

The question took him aback, "What? Yeah, I'm awesome. Why do you ask?"

She furrowed a brow at him, but sensed he didn't want to discuss it. "It's nothing, I guess. If you ever want to talk you know you can tell me anything, right?"

Leo forced a laugh, "I'll keep that in mind, Pipes."

"Piper," Annabeth called from the back of the ship, still studying her tablet. "I think I've found something you might want to check out."

"Coming!" Piper called back before leaving, but not without giving Leo another imploring look.

Leo ignored it. Now was not the time to discuss his girlfriend…. his ex-girlfriend. No, he had a distraction now. He and his friends were off the save the world again. Just another day in the life of Leo.

 _Hello reader! I know I know I'm probably going to get a lot of hate for Calypso breaking up with Leo, but I had the idea for this story while I was in the middle of reading The Mark of Athena so...Calypso wasn't even in the picture at that point. I tried to shake it out of my brain, but, alas, it stuck with me. Also,I know that Rick Riordan has a series of books with Norse mythology and everything...just assume those don't exist in this fiction if you've read them. I'm Scandinavian so Norse mythology has always been something I enjoy, just in case you didn't guess there would be Norse mythology in this baby by my Vallhalla reference. Spoilers. Anyway, I'm sorry Leo and Calypso aren't a thing in this story, but it's gunna be great I promise. Thanks for reading and please leave me a review! Even the bad reviews make my day._


	2. Leo II

It was kind of hard to drift off and daydream about Calypso.

First off, now that they were in the water Percy had decided it would be fun to see if his weird Son-Of-Poseidon-Water-Homing-Pigeon superpowers were as accurate as Leo's navigation devices. Leo was happy to report that his inventions held up against Percy's weirdness just fine.

Plus, Annabeth and Piper were discussing where they should go and look for this other half-blood camp while Frank rambled on about how he was excited that they were going to Canada. The only ones who were quiet were Hazel and Jason.

At least as far as he knew Jason was being quiet. He was dealing with a couple of wind spirits that had tried to rip one of their sails to shreds. Hazel was, meanwhile, trying to listen to Frank over the chatter.

Still, he managed to drift off from time to time. Back to Ogygia. If they were there then she wouldn't have anywhere to travel to. No new people to meet. It would have just been them. It would have been perfect.

He shook his head slightly. He couldn't regret leaving Ogygia, and he couldn't regret taking her away from it either. That was just cruel.

After pulling himself out of one of these dazes he caught Piper staring at him. She looked concerned and sad, like she knew something was going on with him, but didn't exactly know what it was. She gave him a smile before he broke his gaze with her and busied himself with the ship. He asked Festus how everything was going and the dragon whirred and clicked and groaned from the front. Everything was fine. Still, he was feeling crowded so he had Annabeth take over the helm for a bit while he gave the engine a quick touch up, muttering some half-baked story about having to tighten some screws before vanishing.

He was only gone for a few minutes, but of course it was long enough for all Tartarus to break loose. The sea was restless and Percy was climbing back into the boat, gasping something like 'never seen anything like it' while Annabeth was panicking at the helm.

Leo ran to her and took over, apologizing when he sort of pushed her out of the way a little bit. Festus was growling angrily from the stern of the ship and Leo asked the dragon just what was going on. "Do we need to take off?" He knew it could be dangerous where Jason wasn't back yet, but sometimes a demigod had to do what a demigod had to do.

"I don't know," Percy bellowed back as he tried to control the water a bit to keep the boat under control. "Whatever it is it's not attacking us!"

"Is it a storm?" Leo asked, still trying to figure out what was happening.

"It's some sort of monster!" Annabeth shouted over the restless ocean.

Leo pulled open his scanner, but he couldn't see anything on it. Festus was trying to interrupt him on the intercom, but he ignored the dragon's message to study the sonar, but it didn't make ANY sense. The thing in front of them didn't look much like a monster. More like a huge and moving underwater mountain.

There was a thud next to Leo, but he didn't pay attention until he realized that Jason landing was the source of the sound. "What's going on with the water? The air is calm!"

"It's time to take off then," Leo said over the noise. "Just let me try and finish getting a scan on this thing." It was just another ten seconds, but it felt a lot longer with the way the water buffeted the boat around. He got the image, but didn't examine it just as a huge wave crashed into the deck, despite Percy's efforts to keep the boat afloat. "Alright, time to go!" Leo yelled over the noise. Frank held onto the mast, and onto Hazel. Annabeth looked conflicted between going to hold onto Percy, but she didn't.

Just before Leo configured the last process to shoot the ship into the air it rose out of the water. It was black and covered in sharp spines, but there were no fins or limbs on the beast. It was curving up like a loop in a shoelace, but rising higher and higher. The demigods stood and stared at it, transfixed by it. It rose until it was higher than the tallest sky scraper before one of its edges started to slide back in the water, being pulled down by the weight of the other side.

Percy was the one who realized what would happen once the monster was submerged in the water again. "Leo! Any time would be great!" He shouted.

Leo snapped out of his daze and got to work on the ship again, knowing that once that big black worm thing got into the water again it would send out a massive wave. A wave that would probably capsize the Argo 3.

Before the monster finished diving under, they took off. Percy beckoned some waves to help in the ascent and Jason mustered up a whirlwind behind the sails and they were up in the air. Once they were safe in the air it was astounding how different everything was. The sky was clear and calm, just as Jason had said. There was no reason for the storm below.

Exhausted from the effort to keep the ship aloft, Percy slumped onto the ground and leaned against the wall around the deck. Annabeth had been knocked onto the floor from the takeoff, but she didn't bother standing up. She crawled over to her boyfriend and Percy managed to loop an arm around her shoulders and kiss her brow.

Jason was still ushering the wind in the sails along while Hazel and Frank blindly groped for each other's hands, still in a state of shock.

Piper was leaning so far over the edge of the boat to look below that Leo was afraid she'd fall to her death if a gust of wind hit them wrong.

"What the hell was that thing?" Piper asked once Jason and Leo decided they were far enough away from the monster to slow down.

"If I had to guess," Annabeth answered, still leaning into Percy, who looked like he was half asleep, "I'd say Jormungand."

"Jormungand?" Leo asked.

Annabeth nodded, "The Midgard Serpent. He's…it's a…Nordic monster."

"What's a Nordic?" Frank asked, a bit stupidly. Not that anyone could blame him. The ordeal they had gone through had been…rattling.

"Norse," Annabeth answered, exasperated. "Scandinavian. Didn't anyone else study up of Norse myths before this quest?"

"Why would we?" Leo asked plainly.

She rolled her eyes and looked at the sky as if saying 'dear gods, why are all my friends so stupid?' Instead, she said, "Valhalla. The prophecy mentioned Valhalla and Asphodel. We all know what Asphodel is, but Valhalla is a Nordic thing. It's sort of like our equivalent of the Isles of the Blessed for us."

"Great, I love the afterlife," Percy said. "Maybe we can meet Hades for lunch if this doesn't take too long."

No one seemed amused by the quip. Not even Leo. No, they'd all had more than enough of the afterlife. The friends had every intention of doing as little dying as possible.

"Hey guys," Frank said from the side of the boat. "Could this other demigod camp and Valhalla thing have anything to do with the fleet of ships down there?"

Everyone rushed to the side of the ship. Leo was the last one there, since he had to put the trireme in autopilot before joining his friends. When he made it there his stomach sank. Half a dozen longboats were right where they had been before, in the restless water bobbing like corks. At first he thought they were triremes, but they weren't. Instead of two sails these ships had one huge sail. The biggest sail was patterned in wide red and white vertical stripes with a big golden dragon placed in the center.

Percy was using a spyglass to look down at the boats and when he put the glass down he looked somber. "Hey Jason, I think you better put up a white flag…they spotted us."

Jason chanced a glance at his girlfriend before he went to raise the flag. Piper looked more nervous than anyone else. She probably wasn't expecting to meet the other demigods so soon…and in a state where they were so outnumbered.

It was pretty easy for Leo to stay optimistic though. They'd been in tighter scrapes than this. What was the worst a couple of Viking boats could do?

 _Hi again everyone! I'm just going to warn you now that there will be Vikings in the next chapter. As someone descended from Vikings…I think it's fair to warn you that the Norse demigods aren't going to be as polite as the Greek and Roman demigods. There will be some nasty swearing. If you can't handle stuff like the almighty and fearsome F-Bomb, then you might not be too thrilled about the next chapter so continue at your own digression. Also, Dear Percabeth shippers, they are my, how you say, Oteepee. There will be plenty of fluffy lovey moments ahead. Don't forget to follow and review if you liked it! 3_


	3. Percy

Percy was a bit uneasy to be back in the water…that was weird. However, he didn't feel like he could be blamed for that. That…thing, the Jormuggy or whatever. Well, frankly, he had been a bit disturbed by it. He couldn't wrap his head around a monster being that big. Whatever it was that they had seen it was huge. He had seen it more clearly than anyone else, having actually been in the water with it. Even the images and graphs and charts Leo pulled up did little justice to the sheer vastness of it. And he hadn't even seen its head or its tail. He hadn't let go of Annabeth's hand during the decent and she didn't make any move to leave. He appreciated that. He didn't want her to worry too much. They'd faced Tartarus together. Nothing should have scared him. Still, something about that beast…

He looked at her and smiled. He didn't know how he had gotten so lucky with her. He tried to not question it too much, in case some illusion in her head broke and she decided to run away. He was pouring over her computer, probably doing some last minute research on Vikings. Sure, the computer wasn't as good a Daedelus's had been, but Leo had done an excellent job of making a suitable replacement.

She put the computer away and looked up at him. "We should get ready."

He nodded, but before he let her go he kissed her, perhaps a little more urgently than he had anticipated. When they pulled apart there was a blissful smile on his mouth and a slightly embarrassed look on Annabeth's face.

"Seaweed brain," she snapped as she walked away, but it wasn't any good. He knew her too well.

Percy chuckled and watched her go. "I love you too."

Now, when you say 'Viking', what Percy saw wasn't exactly what he was expecting. Sure, the boats were exactly like the Viking ships he had seen in the Met when he was still a kid and there was an exhibit about ancient seafarers. The ships were bigger, though. They were silver, but not in a flashy way. There was a dragon head figure in the front of each of the six boats, but they were small in comparison to Festus. However, Percy had his suspicions that those dragon heads weren't attached to an actual dragon body.

Percy half expected to see a mob of angry long-bearded men jeering at them from inside the boats with horned helmets and engulfed in a cloud of body odor and rotten fish smell. That…wasn't what he saw. Sure, some of the older guys had beards, but none of them went past their breastbone. They looked more suited to sailing than to invasions. Each of them either had a shield on their arms or nearby. Some of them wielded short swords or axes, but they seemed like a group who would rather be dead than caught unarmed. It made Percy a bit more uneasy about parlaying with them, but he still had Riptide in his pocket and Annabeth would be at his side. He had nothing to worry about.

The Vikings sent someone over first. Percy was pretty sure she was a girl, but her helmet covered her face and her leather jerkin hid any clues at her gender. She reminded Percy of Clarisse. He knew they would get along just…great. She had come over on a line attached to a grappling hook and she was still hanging onto it. "Your entire party is invited onto our head ship. With the exception of someone to man your vessel." Her air was intimidating, so much so that no one questioned it when she didn't even bother with pleasantries. She clearly didn't bother with nonsense. She wasn't so awful, though. She was just another unpleasant person, no monster.

"I'll stay," Frank volunteered before anyone else could.

Leo looked a bit miffed about that. "Why are you staying? You don't even know how to fly it."

"I'm the son of Mars," Frank answered. "We're supposed to be here to make peace."

Hazel looked confused, "Frank, you're not the sort of person to start a brawl or anything."

Frank shook his head, "Just trust me. Something about that girl made me…really angry. I don't wanna risk anything."

Pipe and Annabeth met each other's eyes and sighed. Though they didn't say it, Percy was pretty sure that they were hoping that Leo would be manning the ship. He would be the best person to have at the helm in case of…emergencies. Plus, Leo had a bit of a mouth on him. A mouth that the Vikings might not appreciate. Not that Percy was one to talk. Still, if something about the ambassador that had come over onto the Argo 3 made Frank mad then it was probably just for the best that they left it at that.

"Alright, Frank mans the helm," Piper said at last. "I'll go across first. Then Jason and Percy. It looks like they're…manly. They might have more respect for us if the boys come after. Then Annabeth, Hazel, and Leo."

"Why am I last?" Leo asked, offended.

"Because you can't shut up and I'm going to need you to be quiet," Piper answered shortly.

Percy laughed at this, but it was short lived.

"Annabeth, I'm going to need you to try and make sure your boyfriend doesn't backtalk anyone," Piper said as an afterthought.

"What?" Percy demanded. "You're putting a muzzle on me?"

Annabeth laughed, "Just be quiet, seaweed brain."

They pulled up next to the biggest ship, the one with the striped sail, and they crossed onto the Viking's ship in Piper's demanded order. Once they were on board they found themselves in a staring contest. Six Greek and Roman demigods against a butt load of Vikings.

The mass of Vikings parted as their captain or leader or…whatever he was approached. He about Percy's age, seventeen or eighteen, was tall and lean, but clearly strong. His chin was square, shaved, and stubborn, his nose had been broken one to many times, but it actually made him look more handsome somehow. His eyes were narrow, almost like they were stuck in a permanent glare, but that couldn't hide their bright green color. Almost unnaturally bright. He wore his straight, honey brown hair in a ponytail at the base his neck. Compared to the unruliness of his crew he looked like a prince among peasants. His eyes passed over the Greeks and Romans thoughtfully before he addressed the collective. "Who speaks for you?"

"I do," Piper stated, taking a brave step towards him.

Percy couldn't help but be nervous. For some reason he had the idea that Vikings weren't really the most open minded. They might balk at the thought of Piper being the leader because she was a pretty little girl. If Nico was here they might find out that he was gay and tie him to a bag of bricks and throw him into the water. He got all these horrible ideas of what the closed minded Vikings might do and he was shocked when the man nodded, accepting Piper's leadership without a thought.

"I'm Erik Stenson, son of Loki and leader of this fleet," he introduced himself in a tone so delightful it reminded Percy of whenever Piper used her charm speak on anyone. "I…must admit, I'm surprised to find Greeks in our waters. Or…above them I suppose. Who exactly build that vessel of yours?"

"I did!" Leo spoke up, his hand shooting into the air before Piper could stop him.

The daughter of Aphrodite scowled at the son of Hephaestus and Leo swallowed, shrinking a bit and lowering his hand.

Erik looked at the Argo 3 again, drinking in its details. "Fascinating," he said. He looked at Leo and smiled, "You truly are an artist, sir."

"Pardon me?" Annabeth spoke up. Percy looked over at her and frowned. She looked confused and wary. Percy didn't like it when she got that look on her face. "You…you said you knew we were Greeks."

Erik's crew chuckled a bit, but they went quiet when their captain raised his hand for silence. "Yes, it seemed logical, as you're sailing in a trireme. Am I wrong?" He smiled at their confused faces. "I'm afraid our parents have…different rearing tactics. There are many threats in the world, Norse and otherwise. Our gods like for us to be…prepared."

Percy had a hard time wrapping his head around this. These Vikings were demigods too. Obviously. But they already knew that there were Greek demigods out there? There was a question on the tip of his tongue, ready to explode out of him. He was a bit outraged, but he hid it well.

Luckily, Annabeth asked the question before Percy spoke up. "If you're aware of other demigods and other monsters you must have known about the waking of Gaia."

Erik seemed to understand the accusation before Annabeth could make it. He turned to fully face her. "Ah, yes, you speak of the earth waking. We were aware of this. We lost many warriors to the frost giants that tried to march south to attack New York. Also, the dragons."

"And the trolls!" a random Viking spoke up.

Erik nodded, "Yes, and the trolls. My point, miss, is that we helped where we could. We didn't want the earth waking any more than you. However, as I'm sure you've noticed, we're still dealing with the after effects of the earth stirring."

"The sea serpent?" Piper guessed.

Erik nodded again, looking back to Piper. "That's one thing to call him. He's…sort of my half-brother."

"That thing is your brother?" Jason asked, looking a mixture of disgusted, doubtful, and awed.

Erik heaved a sigh, "Yes, well…it's not always wise to think of all of the gods' children as your brothers and sisters. It would be exhausting. But yes, he's my half-brother."

Percy looked back at the water, trying to picture Christmas morning with Erik's parents, Erik, and the massive and horrifying monster that had been in the water. Percy could relate, though. Sure, he'd adopted Tyson the cyclops as his brother, but it made his head hurt to think about all of Poseidon's other children as his sisters and brothers.

Annabeth said, "You're a son of Loki…so that _was_ Jormungand."

Erik looked surprised at this. "You're very bright. You must be a daughter of Athena. If you look anything like your mother she must be the fairest Grecian goddess." He smiled, charmingly at her…at Percy's girlfriend. Sure, before Percy had thought Erik was kind of stuck up and kind of smug, but now he was flirting with Annabeth. Percy wanted to stab Riptide right through Erik's stupid face, but he stopped himself. He knew that Annabeth would be really mad at him if he did that. It was even worse that Annabeth was blushing.

Luckily, Piper stepped in before Percy had time to lose his temper and tell this son of Loki to jump off his ship. "Annabeth is very pretty, but, with all due respect, it's not exactly wise to talk about which goddess is prettiest. Last time that happened…well, we don't want to start another Trojan war."

Erik nodded, "You must be a daughter of Aphrodite. You're right, of course. I wouldn't wish war upon you. However, you must understand that unclear why you and your friends are this far north."

"We were sent on a quest because of a prophecy," Piper answered, her back straightening and her chin lifting. She became diplomatic again.

This caught Erik's attention. "A prophecy? You have a seer?"

"An oracle," Piper asked. Percy wasn't sure what the difference was, but he decided it would be better to not ask.

Erik nodded, "I see…well, we should take you to consult with our seer. We'll take you to Camp Midgard and speak with the other captains before consulting the seer. Bane, Holden, Frieda, and Markus shall accompany us to the shrine after supper."

A man at Erik's side cleared his throat, "With all due respect, Kyrie should be in that meeting too. She's more than proved herself and she technical is also a captain."

Erik's handsome face twisted into a scowl, "That _girl_ is unclaimed."

A new voice spoke up, this one female, but low and harsh. "That _girl_ is the only reason any of us still live. Jormungand would have destroyed us all if she hadn't been able to attach the chains."

There was a murmur of agreement. Whoever this Kyrie girl was it was obvious that Erik didn't like her, but why he didn't like her was a mystery. "Fine!" Erik exclaimed, "If she's well enough then she'll accompany us."

His tone implied that he was hoping Kyrie wasn't going to be well enough. This just made Percy want the girl to come along even more.

"You can follow in your trireme," Erik informed Piper, his voice a bit colder than before. More annoyed. "We'll see you at Camp Midgard. But be warned, if you bring war upon us you will regret it." Piper thanked him and they all got back on the trireme.

Percy crossed onto the trireme first and offered his hand to Annabeth to help her down. He didn't know if Erik was still watching, but he didn't care. He pulled Annabeth into him and kissed her, perhaps harder than necessary, but she responded in kind. If the stupid Viking was watching, then the message was clear. 'She's my wise girl. Go get your own'.

They moved apart when Leo pushed his way past them. "Gods you two, get a room," he demanded before moving back to the helm.

Piper was the last off, jumping onto the trireme right after Leo. "DON'T get a room," she countered, probably knowing that Percy was about to tell Leo that he would gladly get a room with Annabeth.

With a smile, he gave his girlfriend one last kiss, this one soft and lingering on her temple, before he went to go ask Piper what he could do to help.

 _Hellp friends! Thanks for taking an interest in this story. Things should start picking up soon. Also no, Rick Riordan's Norse universe isn't in this story. I haven't read that series yet so I'm not equipped to write about it. Again, thanks for reading and don't forget to review to brighten my day. Love ya._


	4. Percy II

Percy had been awestruck by Camp Jupiter when he first arrived there. However, he had to admit that he was more fond of this Viking camp. What had Erik called it? Camp Midgard. Once they passed into the harbor, which was on the edge of a river that flowed into the ocean that was lined with thick and old evergreens, it only took a few minutes before they reached the docks. The land beyond the docks had been cleared and the tree line was held back by a collection of cabins, kind of like Camp Half-Blood's, but these cabins were different. The whole camp looked like it came straight out of the dark ages. The cabins all had dragons carved into the roofs. The Vikings really liked their dragons. There were ten cabins in a semicircle and at the top of the arch of buildings was a three story tall Nordic house, that really looked more like an old timey castle than a cabin. Percy imagined this was the Nordic version of The Big House back at Camp Half-blood. The way the buildings were set up there was a clear view of the river from any of the buildings. As a son of Poseidon, he couldn't help but be a bit envious of their position. Still, they seemed exposed in the event of an attack on the water. Then he remembered that Vikings were master sailors. It seemed unlikely that they had no other defenses around the camp. He just hoped that he and the Vikings would be on friendly terms if he ever saw them.

How he felt about the new place was nothing compared to Annabeth's complete and utter joy. She was darting from one side of the boat to another, rambling on and on about the architecture. She pointed at the carvings and the grass roofs on a few of the buildings. Percy spent more time looking at Annabeth than he did looking at the cabins. She was always beautiful, but when she was talking about something she was passionate about she was prettier than all of the goddesses combined. He could hardly believe that once upon a time he got annoyed when she talked about architecture. Now he could listen to her ramble about designs and support systems for hours. If he was in the right mood for it at least.

They pulled up on the dock behind the last ship to come in, the smallest of the Viking fleet. It also looked like the most beat up one of the six. Festus was getting impatient, whirring, and clicking to Leo indignantly. Leo, in turn, went to the dragon's head and petted him. "I know, buddy. I don't know if letting you out here is such a good idea. Maybe you should turn down for a bit."

Reluctantly, Festus made a few more clicking noises before his eyes dimmed a bit and he slipped into robot dragon dreamland. He would still be active enough to know when someone entered the trireme, and if that person was friendly or not. Frank and Jason were already off the ship, securing it to the dock when Percy arrived to help them finish it off. Hazel and Annabeth were making sure all the doors were locked and anything of value was tucked away somewhere safe. Not that they wanted to start their mission off on a mistrustful foot, but…well, Vikings didn't exactly have the best reputation.

Once everything was secure they regrouped on the dock and went over everything again. Hazel and Piper were looking particularly annoyed…particularly with Leo. Percy didn't know why though. Sure, Leo was acting kind of weird, but he figured it something was up Leo would tell him if he wanted to, and more importantly, when he wanted to.

"I really just wish you would tell us what's going on. We just want to help," Piper asked quietly as she stepped off the ship behind Leo, but before Hazel. She paused thoughtfully before asking, "Is it something to do with Calypso?"

"Ladies, I'm fine!" Leo insisted.

Hazel's hand clenched into a fist at her side, holding back her anger. Before she could open her mouth to say something, though, a sharp scream filled the air and a Viking went down on the dock, clutching their thigh.

The friends looked at each other imploringly before rushing forward to investigate. The Viking on the ground was a girl, maybe fifteen years old, with thick, short red hair cut short, but spiked up to look less like a pixie cut and more like a fauxhawk. Her face was pretty, except for a long and jagged scar that shone bright white against her freckled face like a flash on lightning stretching from above her eyebrow and diagonally across her nose before stopping on her opposite cheek. Her eyes were olive green and watery, and glaring daggers at anyone who dared to meet her eye.

"Are you sure it's not pinching?" her friend asked. He was a big black guy, even taller thank Frank, with long dreadlocks that were tied in a ponytail. His eyes were a shade of blue that was startling against his dark complexion. He was kneeling next to the girl, looking deeply disturbed.

She glared at him. "James, this is Odin Steel. It doesn't just randomly pinch. Plus, a little fucking pinch wouldn't send me to the ground."

Percy was confused. Odin Steel? What was Odin Steel? Percy shouldered his way into a position where he could more clearly see the scene. The girl was wearing brown leather leggings, a dark brown leather tunic, and mismatched shoes. One of them was a black combat boot on her right foot. The other was a gray boot that was a dull, metallic color, almost the same color as the boats. In fact…Percy was pretty sure that it _was_ made out of the same metal.

Someone wedged in next to him and he looked down to see Hazel. She took in the scene, but then her mouth fell open in horror. "Oh gods," she said before rushing over to the girl. The redhead girl and the black guy were trying to pull the metal boot off, but whenever it moved the wrong way the girl would curse and punch the guy. She wasn't just giving the poor dude little love taps like Annabeth did to him every now and then, but it was clear that she was holding back.

Hazel knelt next to the girl, "I'm so sorry, I did this."

The girl looked at Hazel like she was some sort of alien. "Excuse me? Wait, aren't you one of the Greeks?"

"I'm Roman, actually. But it was an accident, I swear," Hazel insisted before touching the girl's metal boot. There was a metallic groan and the boot loosened around her thigh. The girl winced a bit, but didn't say anything. Hazel looked concerned and wary, like she may have just started a war between Camp Midgard and the Romans and Greeks. Percy held his breath when he realized that she might have.

The girl studied Hazel, but she didn't look angry, just confused. Intrigued. The girl looked at her toe and tried to point and flex it, but she seemed to be having some trouble with it. She got onto her feet, seeming to be struggling a bit with her metal shoe. Scowling at Hazel, she pulled a heavy looking axe off her back and held it up, wiggling it a bit over her shoulder like a baseball player getting ready to swing at a ball. Only instead of a flying ball the girl was aiming for Hazel's head. "Already causing problems and you've only been here five minutes."

"Hey!" a new voice piped up. Percy looked over and saw Leo, looking pretty mad, probably considering a good way to barbeque the redhead Viking. "She said it was an accident. If you're going to be mad at anyone you should be mad at me. I was the one annoying her."

"Then you'll be next," the girl snapped before hefting her axe and getting ready for the swing. There wasn't any time. Leo was too shocked to even make a fireball. Hazel started to draw her sword, Percy pulled out his pen and was about to draw the sword, but he didn't have to.

The girl's axe fell and was embedded in a round wooden shield so deeply that the girl couldn't pull her weapon free. Another Viking had run between Hazel and the redheaded girl just in time to intercept the axe. She was smaller than the redhead with straight blonde hair in a thick braid going from her forehead to the nape of her neck and a few smaller braids rolled close to her scalp, making it look like she had shaved the sides of her head to make a mohawk at first glance. Apparently Vikings had a thing for mohawks. The blond girl peeked over her shield and met the redhead's eyes, holding the shield still despite the other girl trying to pry her axe free.

"Step away," the redhead snarled. "This doesn't concern you. The Roman bitch broke my leg."

Hazel's jaw dropped and she covered her mouth at the insult. Percy glanced at Leo and Jason, both of which looked as confused as he felt. For someone with a broken leg she looked The blond glared at the bigger girl, unaware of Hazel's offended expression. She pulled the axe out of the other girl's hand before peeling the axe out of the wood and extending the weapon to the girl. "Sara, this is not something to start a war over. She said she was sorry and that it was an accident."

Sara eyed the axe skeptically, like the other girl had hexed it or something before "Does that fix it?" Sara glared at Hazel, readjusting her grip on the axe. Percy was really miffed that the other girl had given her the axe back.

The blonde stepped in front of Hazel, hiding her from Sara's gaze. "I will get it fixed by tomorrow."

Sara scoffed, "You can't get it fixed by tomorrow."

"I'm the one who got it in the first place. I can get it," the blond snarled angrily.

"Even so, what justice is there?" Sara demanded.

The blond sighed. Suddenly, she looked tired and sad. "Please don't do this, Sara. Not today."

"Why shouldn't I?" Sara questioned defiantly.

The girl put down her shield and pulled another shield off her back. Percy had been so consumed by the scene that he hadn't even noticed how strange it was that this girl had two shields. However, once the blond showed Sara her second shield she froze, her face contorted in disbelief. Sadness. "Not today, Sara. Please."

Sara looked at James over her shoulder and Percy realized that the guy looked downright miserable and was looking anywhere but at the shield. "James, I'm so sorry," Sara said, her tone genuine and sad. Sara turned back to the blond and bowed her head. "It's forgotten. I won't pursue justice on this matter anymore."

The blond nodded, "Thank you. I'll take it now, if that's okay." Sara nodded and started unstrapping her metal boot before taking it off. Percy's eyes went wide when he realized that she wasn't taking off a boot. She was taking off a prosthetic. The blond took the leg, hefting it over her shoulder. She extended her hand to the larger girl and they gripped each other's arms below the elbow. Sara glanced at Hazel, but she looked away and moved to head off the dock.

"James," the blond called the other boy. He turned reluctantly and she offered him the shield. He looked at it like it broke his heart before he took it and thanked her. He left, clutching the shield tightly to his chest.

The blond turned around to head to another boat without a word to the seven. Percy watched her walk away, but didn't say anything to her. He was too dazed to do so.

Leo swallowed a lump in his throat and looked at Jason. Superman looked nervous and locked eyes with his girlfriend before taking her hand in his and looking at her.

"I heard there was an incident." The voice came from behind them and they all jumped before turning to find themselves faced with Erik, looking diplomatic as always. "I'm glad it didn't escalate. I hope you can forgive Sara. She's a daughter of Tyr. Very temperamental, especially when it comes to her prosthetic. Are we alright, I hope."

Piper smiled before anyone else could speak. "Yes, of course. It was an unfortunate accident. Nothing else."

There were footsteps coming from behind them and Erik looked over their shoulders to see the blond girl again. His face darkened before he feigned friendliness and he smiled.

"Ah, it's nice to see you on dry land again," he told her, his voice smooth like silk.

The girl stopped to look up at him, scowling darkly and readjusting the steel leg on her shoulder. It was plain that there was no love lost between them. Unlike Erik, though, the girl didn't bother trying to act like they were friends. Percy found he had more respect for the girl than Erik because of this. It probably didn't help that Erik had flirted with Percy's girlfriend. "I have no time for this, Erik. I have leg that needs fixing and a funeral to plan."

At the word 'funeral' the seven perked up and stared at the girl. Behind her, being carried on a stretcher by two other demigods and covered in a white sheet was what a corpse. Frank took off his baseball cap and held it against his chest, almost like he was about to sing the national anthem.

Erik stepped in her way before she could get far. "Not so fast, Kyrie. I'd like to put in a request while you're getting that leg done."

Kyrie glared up at Erik. "If you want to put in requests then maybe you should improve camp relations with the dwarves. They only do me favors because I treat them with respect."

Erik rolled his eyes, "They do you favors because that Bari likes you."

She ignored that. "Do you really want me to challenge you for your position again? I have a lot to do today, but I'm sure I can fit you in."

He smirked, "Win or lose, you can't challenge me. It makes no difference. You're unclaimed."

Kyrie was quiet for a count of three before a confidant smile tugged at her mouth. "For now," she informed him coolly. "I'll see you after dinner."

She looked back at her crew and jerked her head forward, indicating that they follow her. Without another word or gesture she left with her friends and the body behind her. The son of Loki was flustered and irritated. Percy didn't know who, but Erik reminded him of someone…he couldn't place his finger on who that someone was, but he was sure that he wasn't that person's biggest fan.

"I'm so sorry about her," Erik said, his voice smooth and charming again, though there was a faint trace of annoyance in his voice. "She's rather rude, I'm afraid."

"Rude?" Frank asked, disbelieving.

"She stopped that Sara girl from putting an axe in me," Hazel said, coming to the Kyrie girl's defense.

Sure, she hadn't exactly been Chatty Kathy, but Percy didn't think the girl was rude. Maybe not polite, but after years of fighting monsters Percy's definition of rude was a bit more forgiving than normal. He couldn't blame her for not wanting to discuss pleasantries. Especially where one of her friends had just died and she was charged with planning the funeral. Honestly, Percy would have preferred the Kyrie girl over Erik any day. That could have just been because Erik was still making eyes at Annabeth, but Percy tried to keep an open mind…that wasn't that easy when Percy remembered that stupid guy flirting with his girlfriend.

"Would you like a tour?" Erik offered, gesturing to the camp. He was friendly enough, but Percy was sure this guy was just a slime ball. His disliking for Erik increased when Annabeth responded with an amount of excitement that tied Percy's insides into a knot.

Jason gave him a confused look when Percy didn't follow the group, the two of them being the last ones on the dock. "Are you okay man?"

"Yeah, I'm good…let's go," Percy said tightly before he and he met with the back end of their group.

 _Hi everyone! Thanks for following and reviewing and subscribing and everything! I probably won't be posting quite as quickly as I have been until next year (bad jokes about things in the near future being next year still aren't funny, but I enjoy them). I hope you've liked my new chapters with my Vikings. I love my Vikings. I hope I've been doing all right with staying in character and everything. Usually my wrting style is a bit more stuck up than this so it's still a little new. I haven't quite decided whose POV to write the next chapter from yet so if you have any thoughts on the matter please let me know and you might get your wish! Or I might just do something totally different and completely disappoint you, who's to say. Anyway, don't forget to review and say hi! Love you guys! Have a good weekend!_


	5. Annabeth

Annabeth was a little…overwhelmed. She felt bad for not noticing just how sour Percy was looking. She couldn't help it! She had been a fan of architecture since she was a kid. She knew all about the old Nordic buildings in the Scandinavian counties. Churches, mostly. However she'd never seen more than photographs. Now she was looking at a collection of massive cabins in that style. She had gone to Vikingsholm when she and her dad had gone to Lake Tahoe for Spring Break with her step family before she had run away from home and it felt a bit like returning there, only with more buildings rather than the one mansion.

Plus she was considering the scene between Kyrie and Erik. She still hadn't gauged enough on their relationship to decide if they were even on the same side or not. If they weren't then would Annabeth have to help her friends decide on which side they were on?

When Erik left them, insisting that they were free to explore on their own Annabeth turned to grab Percy's arm and tell him to come with her. Only he wasn't there. She scanned their group. Piper and Jason were holding hands and talking while Jason experiementally put his hand against the pointed end of one of the long spikes that lined the bottom edge of the roof. Jason pulled his hand away and gave the building another, more respectful look. The spikes must have been as sharp as they looked. Hazel was talking about some of the carvings on the buildings, being an art lover. Frank nodded along, trying to look interested, but Annabeth could tell he was bored. Leo's hands were in his toolbelt, probably fliddling with something. Percy was nowhere to be seen.

Annabeth frowned and did a doubletake, checking the area again to make sure she wasn't jumping to conclusions. She wasn't. Percy wasn't there.

Since Leo was the only one on his own so Annabeth chose to approach him. He jumped when she showed up next to him. He was probably not paying attention. "Hey Annabeth," he said nervously. He released whatever she was working on in his tool belt before wiping his hands off and shoving them into the pocket of his jeans.

"Hey Leo," she replied in kind. "Have you seen Percy?"

Leo looked down, but he didn't meet her gaze. "I dunno. I think he had to take a leak or something."

Annabeth made a face. "Wow, Leo. Classy."

He shrugged, but didn't say anything else. She frowned at this. Hazel and Piper were right. Something was definitely up with him. She just didn't know what. She made sure the other girls were still occupied with their boyfriends before she looked at him hard and asked, "Are you okay?"

Leo made a noise like air being realized from an overfilled tire. "What're you talking about, Annabeth? I'm great."

Annabeth said nothing, but her gaze implied that she wasn't convinced. Leo tried to be strong under her gaze, but it was hard to not crack under her gaze. It felt like she already knew everything and was just waiting for him to own up to it. He heaved a sigh and his head dropped, his chin resting against his chest. "Calypso broke up with me," he admitted quietly, his feet shuffling in the dirt.

"Oh, Leo, I'm so sorry," she pulled him into a hug before he could stop her and comfortingly and asked him, "Do you wanna talk about it?"

Leo shook hishead before pulling away. "Nah, I'll be okay. Can you maybe…you know?"

Annabeth nodded. He didn't need to elaborate. "I won't tell anyone," she promised.

Leo jerked his head toward something behind her, "What do you think that thing is?"

Annabeth turned and looked at whatever it was that had caught Leo's attention. It was a little man. He looked like a stocky and burly child. If it wasn't for the massive, bushy beard on his face she would have thought he was just a kid, probably seven or eight years old. He was being held aloft by two demigods, kicking and screaming. "Sneaks! Thieves!" he bellowed. "Cheaters! Liars! Witless! Clumsy!" Another demigod balled up a piece of cloth an shoved it in the little man's mouth. It muffled his shouts, but he still tried to scream and his fighting just became the more intense.

"Go back into the mountains!" a nordic demigod demanded.

The scene had attracted the attention of the other greek and Roman demigods. Frank and Hazel gaze Leo and Annabeth concerned looks. Jason adjusted his glasses on his nose and Piper frowned and stiffened, uncomfortable with the scene.

The little man got the upperhand and kicked one of his captors hard in the jaw, freeing one of his hands. He pried the gag out of his mouth before turning on the other demigod and sinking his teeth into the boy's wrist. The boy shouted and shook his arm until the creature dislodged, running away and leaving the demigod with blood spouting from his wrist.

"Uh, guys, that thing is running at us," Leo said uncomfortably.

The man stopped about a yard from the six demigods, his mouth and beard still stained red with his victim's blood. He sniffed the air experimentally before smiling at them, baring small and sharp teeth. "New gods, new kids," he said quickly.

He started on them and Annabeth experimentally pulled out her dragonbone sword. Her friends armed themselves too. It didn't seem fair, but Annabeth didn't want that…thing sinking it's teeth into her.

Before it could get to them a new figure put itself between the demigods and the…little man. Annabeth expected it to be Percy. Coming to the rescue at the last minute. Typical for his seaweed brain.

It wasn't Percy. It was that girl that Erik didn't seem fond of. What was her name again?

The girl was still in full armor, but the prostetic leg she had taken from the other girl wasn't with her anymore. The brain along the crown of her head was halfway undone, like she had been caught in the process of taking her hair down. Annabeth had expected the girl to come in and take the little monster's head off. She didn't. Instead, she raised her bare arm and used her flesh to block its gnashing teeth. The beast man froze, his teeth deep in the girl's flesh.

The Nordic girl quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out a silver coin, about as big as a drachma. She held the coin under her arm and let the blood slowly dripping from her arm fall onto the silver. She rubbed the blood into the coin before she held it up for the little man. Once he saw the coin his eyes went wide and he swiped for the coin, his teeth coming off the girl's arm.

Quickly, the girl used her injured arm and grabbed the man's beard, holding onto it tightly.

"No!" The man bellowed, trying to pull his beard out of the girl's grip, but she wouldn't let go.

She gave his beard a sturdy tug and he froze. "Calm down. I will let you go and give this to you." She held up the coin where he could see it and his eyes went wide. She moved the bloody coin back and forth and his eyes followed it. "Yes, you want this, don't you?"

His mouth was wide open, but he managed to echo, "Want this."

"Very good," she said, releasing his beard. She stood so that his short arms couldn't get the coin. "Now, what're you doing here?"

The little man dug around in his pocket before producing a small white cord wound up in a little coil. "Valkyrie."

She sighed before admitting, "I'm Valkyrie." She admitted, as if saying that was her name was embarrassing.

The little man held up the cord over his head proudly, looking like a tiny statue of liberty wannabe. "Present."

She bent down and took the little cord. She bowed her head at the little demon man respectfully. "Thank you, this is greatly appreciated. Next time, please just go to my house though. You'll attract less attention. Less trouble."

"No trouble," the little man repeated zealously, eying the coin still in her hand.

She held out her bloody arm to him. "Do you mind?"

"No mind," he said before grabbing her arm, hawking a massive loogi, and spitting it on the bloody bitemark on her arm. Annabeth was taken aback and had to resist the urge to say 'ewww!'.

Kyrie didn't mind, though. She gave the little man the coin and said, "Go in peace now."

With that the little man took off like a jet, admiring his prize and heading for the woods around the clearing.

"What in heaven's name was that thing?" Hazel asked before anyone else could.

Kyrie turned around, rubbing the little man's spit into her wound. "He's a dwarf. A young one. Probably only about forty or fifty. A bit aggressive and not quite fluent in human languages, but they're not all like that. They're generally pretty peaceful…are you all okay?"

Everyone in the group nodded. Annabeth was about to mention that Kyrie wasn't alright, but as the dwarf spit dried away the bitemark seemed to fade with it.

"So if that was a dwarf, does that make you Snow White?" Leo asked.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Gods, Leo, what kind of a stupid question is that?"

Kyrie looked too confused to be either amused or offended. Sort of like the tables had been turned and suddenly Leo was the weird dwarf man.

"So, Valkyrie," Frank began, probably trying to sound friendly by using her full name.

Kyrie, it would seem, didn't appreciate this. She groaned and her head leaned back, her eyes looking up at the sky. "Please don't call me Valkyrie. The only person who can call me Valkyrie is my abuela, and I'm pretty sure she does that to spite me."

"Your grandma?" Annabeth asked, not sure if she heard right. She wasn't really good at Spanish.

"You have an abuela?" Leo asked skeptically. "Not a granny or a nana, but an abuela?"

Kyrie scowled at Leo, "Abuela is half Dominican. Grew up on the islands. My mom is only a quarter Dominican. Not only am I the newest generation with the least Latin blood, but I'm also the whitest."

Her background seemed to be a touchy subject. Annabeth decided it would be wise to avoid it.

Leo, however, didn't seem to pick up on this. "Well Vikings are pretty northern and stuff. Northern people are super white. Who's your dad?"

Kyrie scowled and her fingers like she was contemplating if she should punch Leo in my throat or not. "I'm unclaimed," she answered, her words short and tight. Annabeth wasn't sure what that meant. Perhaps the girl was undetermined. If that was the case it seemed that not knowing your godly parent was a bigger deal to the Norse than it was to Greeks and Romans. "That's not important though." She scanned the group, like she was trying to decide who was the least stupid among them. The girl must have been pretty perceptive because she looked Annabeth straight in the eye before she said, "I should advise you that it's foolish to place all your trust in the children of Loki."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow at this. "Are you saying that Erik can't be trusted?"

Kyrie shrugged, "Who you trust is your business. I just advise that you be wary. I don't know why you've come here, especially now, but tensions are really high here. We've lost more than half our number in the last year."

Annabeth looked at Piper who frowned. The only reason Annabeth and Percy had even agreed to come was because it was the summer before they started their first semester at New Rome College. It wasn't exactly the plan for a summer vacation that she had in mind, but she and Percy both felt uneasy about ignoring the quest. Whatever was happening here clearly wasn't pleasant. Annabeth was really glad she had agreed to go on the quest.

"How have you lost so many?" Frank asked, awed.

Kyrie looked at him, but answered, lifting her chin so she met his gaze. "Some of Jormungand binds have come undone. It happened when the Earth Mother was stirring. Now it's possible he may release his tail."

"Why is this guy holding his tail?" Leo asked quizzically.

Kyrie looked back at Leo, still in awe of him. Annabeth knew that look very well. She made it whenever someone said or did something idiotic.

"Jormungand is the serpent that circles the world," Annabeth told Leo before the silence got awkward. "When he released his tail that's supposed to be the beginning of Ragnarok. He and Thor will battle and it'll destroy the world."

Kyrie looked pleasantly surprised. "That's right. That's why Odin and Loki bound him in the 1750's. Everything's…not as bad as it could be for now, but it's still bad. Thor sleeps, for now, but if he knew then it…would not be good."

"Wait a second," asked Leo, putting his hands up in a time-out sign. "You mean that the world could be ending and one of your biggest, toughest gods is just taking a nap instead of helping? Why wouldn't he want to help bind this giant snake dude?"

Kyrie looked confused, "Well that was actually a semi-intelligent question from you. Well done."

Before she could answer the semi-intelligent question, Percy shouted for Annabeth and waved at them from the other end of the clearing. There was an older woman next to him with olive colored skin, wavy black hair, and kindly features. The woman waved at the group and everyone, but Kyrie waved back hesitantly.

Percy and the woman approached. "Guys, there's another water demigod!" he exclaimed excitedly as he gestured at the woman.

The woman rolled her eyes, but he smile stayed. "I assure you, I'm far from my prime. I haven't done anything impressive in years. I'm…retired. I'm Elena." She perked up when she saw Kyrie. "Oh, hello dear. I didn't realize you'd made new friends."

Kyrie looked down, her face red, "I don't even know them, mom."

"Mom?" Percy and Annabeth asked together.

"You're a…" Percy paused to recall the word that the romans had used. "Legacy?"

Kyrie's face darkened, but Elena came to the rescue before the girl could lose her temper. "Oh, no. Valkyrie's a demigod. Well, I suppose she's both."

"Your name's Valkyrie?" Percy asked. "Isn't that like a grim reaper or something?"

Elena began to explain what a valkyrie was, but her daughter cut her off. "It's just Kyrie."

Elena's dark brow furrowed and she studied her daughter. "What has gotten into you?"

Kyrie glared at her mother, her chin stubborn and her eyes defiant. She softened and heaved a sigh, looking down at the ground. "Aiden's dead, mom."

Elena's eyes widened. "Oh, sweetheart." Elena moved to hug her daughter, but Kyrie put up a hand, stopping her. She shook her head and put her hands in her pockets.

"I have to go," Kyrie said quickly before turning on her heels and storming off.

Elena watched after her daughter and frowned, clearly concerned for the girl. She took a step forward, like she was considering if she should go after her daughter or not. She silently seemed to decide that of all the things Kyrie needed right now, a mother wasn't one of them. Elena looked back at Percy and the other demigods before putting on her best motherly smile. "So, anyone have any questions about the camp?"

 _Hey everyone! Merry (almost) Christmas! I hope you found this chapter to your liking. I know it doesn't really go down the path of The Trials of Apollo (I just barely got like half way through the book), but…yeah. As far as the dwarfs, they're not all like that. It's just how I envisioned the younger ones. There's going to be older ones later and they'll be much more eloquent. (spoiler alert, whatever). I'm having issues deciding who to put in charge of the next POV change (the next chapter will still be Annabeth. I'm generally sticking with two chapters with the same perspective for the time being). However, after Annabeth I can't decide if I should go to Hazel, Piper, or Jason or back to Leo. If you have any thoughts or requests or questions or opinions, please let me know. If you have any opinions or insights on my OC's I'd love to hear and discuss them with you as well. I'm really nice, I promise, and I love talking to you guys. Leave me a review and I'll love you for always. Happy Holidays, everyone!_


	6. Annabeth II

The dining hall at Camp Midgard was much less laid back than the pavilion at Camp Halfblood. The tables weren't set up to segregate the campers from each other. Rather than a table for every cabin, or every godly parent, there were two long tables that stretched along both sides of the room, leaving a wide aisle in the center that led from the towering double doors to a head table. The center seat was empty, but Erik occupied the chair directly right of it. There were some older people, the oldest being a lady with long, silky gray hair and dark eyes. She was probably in her sixties, at least, but she carried herself like someone at least twenty years younger than that. There was another man, probably in his thirties, deep in a hushed discussion with Erik. Elena explained that she usually sat at the head table, but she had opted to spend more time with them in case they had more questions. Aside from them the front table was disconcertingly empty.

Sara, the girl missing a leg, was throwing a dagger at the table between the spread fingers of another camper. The boy and his friends all made cheers and shouted in disbelief as she put the knife between his fingers each time. She looked a little smug and amused, the game distracting her from her food. She didn't have her metal limb back yet, but that didn't make her any less intimidating. Annabeth wasn't sure who Tyr, the girl's godly parent, was, but she ventured a guess that Sara was a child of a war god (or Goddess, for all Annabeth really knew. She'd done her researchh, but she didn't know everything).

The black guy with blue eyes and dreads was putting food down in front of the other campers, but his gaze was distant and detached. Kyrie and a few other campers were putting down dishes and clearing them away.

James brought them their food and forced a smile. "Hi, welcome to Camp Midgard," he greeted the seven as he put down a pot of soup in front of them before passing out some bowls and spoons for them. "Hi Miss Evans," he added to Elena, who

Percy looked a bit confused. At Camp Jupiter and Camp Halfblood the food was passed out by nymphs and made to order. Before he could complain Annabeth elbowed him hard in the ribs, knowing him well enough to see what was coming. "Thanks, it was James, right?" Annabeth asked.

James nodded and glanced around as if he was considering if he should excuse himself or stay and exchange pleasantries. He chose the pleasantries. "Yes, James Stark. And you?"

The seven proceeded to introduce themselves. When Pipes smiled at him James' cheeks flushed a bit. Leo winked and pointed a pair of finger guns at James, which seemed to confuse the bigger boy, but James didn't mention it.

"So," James began after they were all properly introduced, "I heard you guys get to go see the Seer."

"Yeah, it's gonna be lots of fun," Percy said, a trace of sarcasm in his voice. Probably just because he didn't want to go hiking.

James raised an eyebrow at the Son of Poseidon. "You've never seen the Seer, clearly."

A girl, maybe thirteen or fourteen years old with black hair in braided pigtails tugged softly on James' sleeve. "Kyrie says it's time," the girl told him somberly.

James' face fell and he looked at his feet, exhaling tiredly. He nodded as he lifted his head, looking at the younger girl. "Thanks El. I'll be along in a minute." The girl nodded and rushed off to the door. James bid them farewell and followed after the girl.

"Will you be going to the river after supper?" Elena asked after she drank the last of her soup out of her bowl and placed it near the pot between the eight of them.

"What's happening at the river?" Frank asked, stopping in the middle of ladling more soup from the pot into his bowl.

"A tribute to the fallen," Elena answered. "No one will expect you to go, but it would be a sign of respect for the camp and its occupants."

"We should go," Piper said.

Piper looked at Annabeth, silently asking if that was a wise choice and Annabeth nodded in return. They were trying to gain the Nordic's trust. There was more to the quest, of course, but one thing at a time. At least for now. Perhaps the Seer would have some new insights on their future. Plus Annabeth couldn't deny that she was curious as to what was different between an oracle and a seer. Rachel Dare wasn't scary. How bad could this seer be?

"So…we're going to a funeral?" Leo asked skeptically.

Hazel glared at him. As the daughter of Pluto she probably didn't like the dead being disrespected, even though the dead were more Nico's territory than her own. "You say that like it's your own funeral."

"If he doesn't behave himself it might be," Piper added, folding her arms, and scowling at Leo.

Leo put his hands up, dropping whatever he had been tinkering with as he did so. "Alright, I'll be on my best behavior. Super respectful and stuff."

Another added to their numbers and everyone turned to look at the newcomer. It was the old woman who had been sitting at the front table. She was poised and elegant. She sat beside Elena and smiled down at the group. "Good evening, everyone."

Leo dropped what he was tinkering with again and it fell into his soup with a _clank_ and a _plop_. "Oh my gods…you're Lupita Revira!" he exclaimed. "My mom used to listen to you, like, every day!"

The woman chuckled, "Yes, I am. It's Lupita Evans now, though. You can call me Lulu, if you'd rather."

"Oh, no, my mom would kill me if she found out that I met Lupita Revira and called her Lulu," Leo answered as he tried to clean himself off a bit, fishing his little machine out of his soup.

Piper looked back at Annabeth and gave her a look that said, 'Who the heck is Lupita Revira?'. Annabeth, in turn, gave Piper a look that said, 'I have no clue who Lupita Revira is'.

Lulu smiled, "Well, I'm pleasantly surprised to be recognized."

Elena rolled her eyes, "Yeah, your ego won't deflate for a few years now."

Lulu snapped something in an angry string of Spanish and Leo winced as if Lulu had just slapped Elena across the face. "Dang!" Leo exclaimed.

Elena rolled her eyes, "Mama, this can wait, certainly."

Lupita nodded, "Certainly. We'll discuss at home." Elena rolled her eyes, but Lupita continued. "I'd like to know why I had to hear from that Erik that Aiden Saxon died today."

"It's not my fault if Kyrie didn't tell you. And you shouldn't expect her to. She's been a bit preoccupied," Elena answered, exasperated. "And don't act as if Erik has no right to be disheartened by it. Aiden was his sister."

"For two weeks," Lupita snapped back. "The only reason that boy hasn't taken over the send off is because the girl had the sense to write down her last wishes."

"Mama, not now, please," Elena begged. She glanced at the Greeks and Romans as if to say 'please behave, we have company'. It reminded Annabeth of how she and her dad bickered sometimes. That made her feel uneasy.

Lupita took the hint and dropped the subject. "Very well. Now, tell me about yourselves, newcomers. Where are you from? Who are your parents?"

Piper and Jason started, introducing themselves and explaining their heritage. When Hazel said she was a daughter of Pluto Lupita frowned, but if that bothered Hazel she didn't act like it did. Lupita responed to everyone else's introductions with interest and zeal.

When introductions were finished Percy asked, "So what about you, Lulu? Where you from?"

"Oh, me?" Lupita smiled. "I was born in the Dominican Republic. Daughter of Apollo."

Annabeth had been taking a drink and she choked on it, spitting, and hacking all over the table. Percy pounded her on the back until her airpipe was cleared. Finally, she asked, "You're a daughter of Apollo?"

Lupita nodded, "Yes. My mama and I moved to New York when I was fifteen so I could pursue a singing career. I wasn't much good at my father's other skills though. Still, I went to your Camp Halfblood and everything."

"How did you end up here?" Leo asked. He sounded more fascinated rather than astounded.

Lupita shrugged, "I was about twenty when I met this one's padre," she said as she gestured to Elena. "He was Njord, the Norse sea god. Elena, being both Greek and Nordic was a bit of a conundrum. Gods and demigods having children isn't really unheard of, but this was a new situation. I was given the choice to either go with my daughter and never return to America or to let her grow up without me somewhere I could never see her again. Naturally, I came here."

"So then," Leo started hesitantly, "Snow White's got a Greek Granny?"

Elena gauged the situation and cleared her throat. "We should head to the river."

Everyone took that as a queue to leave. Piper grabbed Leo's arm and yanked him away despite his request to finish the rest of his stew.

Annabeth put her hand in Percy's and gave him a questioning look. "You confused too?" he asked.

"Yeah," she admitted. "Maybe it's nothing, but it's sort of weird that one of Apollo's kids is here. Not just living here, but has been for years. I think our quest might have something to do with them trying to bind the serpent again."

Percy nodded, "I think the same. I'm hoping this seer guy will have more to say in terms of prophecy. Could clear some things up."

"Or make more questions," Annabeth mumbled. She was beginning to regret coming on this trip. She and Percy had had plans about going to Montauk for a few weeks over the summer. Now it didn't look like that would be happening.

"We'll figure this out," he insisted. "We always do. And then we'll be back in time to go to Montauk." He assured her.

She smiled at him, "Since when can you read minds?"

"Only yours," he told her as he leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I feel like we're a little underdressed for a funeral."

"Where this is your first day here I'm sure you'll be forgiven."

The new voice behind them made Percy jump and he and Annabeth wheeled around to see Erik behind them, smiling in a friendly manner. "Besides, this is my younger sister's funeral. If I can forgive your appearance than anyone else can." He nodded, almost a bow. "Sorry to eavesdrop. I only heard your last comment I promise."

"It's alright," Annabeth assured him before Percy could say something that Annabeth might rail on him for later.

Erik smiled, "Well, I assume you know the way. I have to get ahead of the crowd."

Annabeth looked down at her hand as the son of Loki left. "Um…Percy, could you maybe stop trying to break my fingers?"

Percy jumped and released his girlfriend's hand. "Sorry. It's just…I just realized who that guy reminds me of."

"Care to share?" she inquired when he didn't elaborate.

Percy shook his head and took her hand again, gently this time. "Come on. Being late doesn't seem respectful."

 _Hello to my beautiful followers! Merry Christmas! I hadn't expected this chapter to be up so soon, but while my dad's napping, my sister is writing letters from Santa Claus for my nieces and nephew, my mom's knitting, and my brother-in-law is destorying aliens on the X-Box I figured now's as good a time as any. Merry Christmas to all! I hope you have a good Christmas, or just a good day if you're not celebrating anything. Love ya, stay classy!_


	7. Hazel

Hazel heaved a sigh as she stood between Leo and Frank on the dock. They were on the second dock that was being loaded with mourners, giving them a perfect view of the only boat tied to the dock. Hazel wasn't an expert in Nordic funerals, but she was sure that the boat had something to do with it.

Frank was restless. He tried to hold Hazel's hand, but she shook her head and he shoved his hands in his pockets. She wasn't sure what could be disrespectful or not in this alien setting. She didn't want to risk it. Leo was nervously tinkering with something before she shot him a scathing look. He shrunk and put his project back in his magic tool belt, looking a bit like a dog that had just been kicked. Without his hands at work his fingers twitched and flexed, eager to fiddle with something just to distract him. On the other side of Leo, Piper and Jason were flirting with each other. It wouldn't have bothered her, but this was supposed to be a funeral. Still, Hazel kept her mouth shut. For now.

Jason finished cleaning the lenses of his glasses before he pushed them back up his nose. They were crooked and when he turned to smile at her Piper smiled back before straightening them again. He held out his hand to her and she took it.

"Can I tell you a secret?" Jason asked, his voice low and quiet.

"You can always tell me a secret. I won't promise to keep it though," Piper answered, her voice playful and joking, but low enough that no one would mistake her tone to mirth at the loss of the Viking demigods' comrade.

"Then I can't tell you," Jason said, sighing and acting dejected and disappointed.

Piper shook her head, "No, now you have to tell me."

"Do not," he replied, a small smile on his mouth.

"I'll charm it out of you if I have to," Piper threatened, but she was still just messing with him.

"You wouldn't," he said.

"Just tell her your stupid secret, Jason," Leo snapped from the other side of Piper.

Everyone was taken aback. Hazel and Piper locked eyes and frowned. Jason and Frank looked shocked by this outburst. Of course the boys didn't realize that Leo was acting off up until now. Boys were totally clueless when it came to those kind of things.

"Dude, you need to chill," Jason said hesitantly.

"Leo," Piper began, her voice much more soothing that Jason's, "Whatever's wrong…whatever's going on, you can tell us."

"Yeah," Jason agreed. "You're my best friend. If something's up I wanna help you with it."

Frank didn't mention how he and Leo were best friends (because they weren't exactly best friends), but he did nod, indicating that Leo had his support too.

"Is it something to do with you and Calypso?" Hazel asked cautiously.

Leo frowned and looked at his feet before sighing. "Yeah…Calypso broke up with me."

"What?" Piper exclaimed, looking shocked, her hand flying over her mouth.

Hazel wrapped Leo up in a hug, "Oh, Leo, I'm so sorry."

Someone else wrapped their arms around them too and Hazel looked up to see that Piper had joined on their embrace. "Whatever happens, we're here for you, Leo," the daughter of Aphrodite assured him kindly.

"Yeah…well this is cozy and all, but I'm fine, really," Leo assured them. "Would you mind letting me go?" Piper and Hazel locked eyes for a second before they released him. "Where's Annabeth and Percy?" Leo asked, clearly eager to change the subject.

"We're here," Annabeth said as she arrived, pulling Percy along behind her.

"Cutting it kind of close," Hazel said, lowering her voice and gesturing to the other side of the dock.

James and another boy were carrying abody on a stretcher. Aiden was pretty stocky for a girl, but her face was till pretty and made up. Her hair was strewn around her shoulders and her hands were folded over her belly, the hilt of a sword in her hands. James was plainly distraught, but keeping his composure well. If Hazel had to guess she would have said that Aiden was James' girlfriend. He and the other boy lowered the deceased into a boat, a bit shakily, but without any mishaps. They took their places at the end of the dock on either side of Kyrie. The other boy who had helped James lower Aiden into the boat was a tall kid with dark eyes and shaggy black hair. He sort of reminded Hazel of her brother, Nico. If Nico was taller…and not as pale. Kyrie handed the stranger a bow that Hazel hadn't noticed she was holding and the boy took it without complaint.

What came out of Kyrie's mouth was a language that Hazel had never heard. Maybe Norwegian? She couldn't say. Still, the service was all spoken in that foreign tongue. Despite this, Hazel understood the tone of what was being said. The boy with the bow loosened the rope binding the boat to the dock and Kyrie gave her mother a look. Elena nodded and swept her hand across her body. A small wave pushed the boat into the current of the river and the vessel was swept into the currant before it began to calmly drift away from the camp and towards the sea.

The next words were in English, which shocked Hazel out of her daze. Kyrie reclaimed the bow and said, "We send the daughter of Loki to meet the Valkyries. We will meet again in the gates of Valhalla, as a sister, a lover, a warrior, and a friend." Kyrie's voice cracked at the word 'friend', but no one mentioned it. She nocked an arrow and held it towards James, who lit the end with a plastic, blue cigarette lighter. Once the end of the arrow was ablaze she drew the bow and took aim before releasing the arrow and letting it fly. It arced high over their heads and Hazel followed its path until it found its target in the boat and the vessel burst into flames.

After that it seemed like everyone was eager to leave, like death was a lingering disease and if they stayed at the site too long they'd join the burning body in the boat. Hazel caught a glimpse of Erik holding a hand out to Kyrie, her eyeing it skeptically, and then shaking it. It was clear that the two were still not on friendly terms, but they had come to a truce of sorts, for the day at least.

With as quickly as it ended, Hazel and her friends were nearly the last to leave, but they managed to rush back onto land. They were met by Erik, who was just as cocky as always, but it was plain that the loss of his sister pained him. Hazel thought that that pain was the only genuine thing about him. She wasn't sure if that made her like him more or less.

"Hello," he greeted them, a small smile on his mouth. "I have some bad news about the seer, I'm afraid."

"Bad news before a prophecy?" Percy asked, glancing at his girlfriend. "That can't be a good omen. What happened? Is she dead?"

Erik blinked, confused, "Is who dead?"

Annabeth elbowed Percy, but that didn't stop him from saying, "The seer."

Erik chuckled and shook his head, "No, nothing like that. And the seer is a man. No, it's just that we'll only be able to take three of you to see the seer."

This didn't phase the demigods much. They were used to going out into groups of three. "That's fine. We'll figure out who's going and get back to you."

Erik nodded, "Of course. I'll meet you all with the others at the dining hall in an hour."

Once his took his leave Leo said, "I volunteer."

"You do?" Hazel asked, confused.

"Yeah," Leo answered, "I volunteer to stay behind."

"I'd like to go," Annabeth said. She probably wanted to go out of curiosity, if nothing else. Not that anyone had a problem with that.

"I should go too," Piper said. It made sense. She was the person in charge of leading the seven's quest in the first place. There were no complaints.

"Let's make it like another girl's quest," Hazel spoke up. "This seer could be in a cave or somewhere underground and that's kind of my specialty."

No one made any complaints about the choice. "We'll try and figure out a place to camp or squat while we're here," Jason said. "We can always stay on the ship, but it'll probably be easier to make alliances with these people if we stay among them."

They all agreed on their tasks and set off to work. Hazel and the girls went back to the Argo 3 and started packing for their hike, gearing up and dressing for a hike in the dark. They had to find Leo and ask him where the flashlights were because they couldn't find them to save their lives. They tried consoling him about Calypso again, but he shooed them away and asked to be left alone. Piper advised that they let him come to them when he was ready to talk so they decided to drop the subject until Leo wanted to discuss it.

They were almost back to the dining hall when Hazel realized she had forgotten to do something. Something really important. She told Piper and Annabeth she would catch up to them and explained that she had to go to the bathroom before leaving them behind.

She had to ask for directions but she found it she quickly afterwards. She had finished and was about to finish up and leave when she heard the door to the bathroom slam loudly, followed by the undeniable sound of a bolt lock being put into place. Instinctively, Hazel lifted her feet to make it look like she wasn't there. Someone looked under the stalls and Hazel waited for the person to leave, but they didn't. Instead of the sound of a door opening and shutting again something slid down the wall and a reign of sobs burst forth.

Against her better judgement, Hazel peeked out of her stall. She had to search for a little bit. She finally found the other girl, curled up in the bed of the shower, her face buried in her knees. Hazel slipped in some water that someone had neglected to wipe up and she might have said something unladylike. However, she managed to keep her composure, and stopped herself from falling by seizing the wall of the stall the stranger was crying in.

Only it wasn't a stranger. When the girl looked up it took a while for Hazel to recognize her without the serious and focused expression. Her hair, which had been braided and tied up to resemble a mohawk was now in a simple braid that draped over her shoulder. Her battle armor had been exchanged for a pair of black shorts and a green tee shirt with some strange letters on the front that Hazel didn't recognize. Instead of combat boots she had a pair of black high top sneakers. She still had a sword and an axe on her belt, splayed carefully around her so that she wasn't sitting on them. She looked up at Hazel and wiped her tears away, though that did no good. Her face was still red and her eyes were puffy. "What do you want?" the girl snapped, her body going tense.

Hazel took a step back and raised her hands defensively. "Nothin', I just wanted to see if you were okay."

"I'm fine," Kyrie snapped, though her voice cracked at the word 'fine'.

"Are you sure?" Hazel asked. She didn't feel good about letting this girl cry her eyes out alone, but she understood that everyone had different ways of mourning. Her best friend had just died. Hazel was sure Kyrie needed someone to talk to and she was less intimidating without her armor. If Hazel could be there for this girl, then she would be. Besides, they were there to build an alliance with the Vikings.

Kyrie glared down at her feet at this question, but his lip was still quivering. "No…no, I'm not okay."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

Kyrie looked at Hazel, considering the Roman girl for a moment before saying, "I think I would, actually, but only if you wash your hands."

Hazel looked a bit offended. Was that something to do with the fact that she wasn't a white or something equally stupid?

Kyrie seemed to pick up on this thought. "I'm assuming you just went to the bathroom and I didn't hear the sink so…I'm assuming you didn't wash up after. It's kind of gross, and not healthy."

"Oh," Hazel said, feeling slightly embarrassed. Still, she went and washed her hands before returning to the shower. She wasn't sure how to do this, but Kyrie took her axe off her belt and moved it on the other side, giving enough room for Hazel to sit next to the girl.

It took a little bit for Kyrie to open up, and Hazel was about to ask Kyrie about her friend when the girl began.

"Aiden was a year-rounder here. She was here since she was six. My mom decided to move back with her when I was four. Apparently three generations of demigods attracts a lot of attention, even if abuela is well past her fighting days."

"So you two grew up together?" Hazel asked.

Kyrie nodded, "Yeah. I helped her come out to everyone. I basically forced her to make a move on James because they kept skirting around the fact that they had feelings for each other like a bunch of idiots." Kyrie sniffed and wiped another tear away. "We had these stupid and elaborate plans for Halloween…I don't think I'll even want to do anything for Halloween ever again. It was always her favorites-"

Before Kyrie could say 'holiday' she collapsed into a fit of sobs again, burying her face in her hands. Hazel wrapped an arm around the girl's back and used her other arm to pull her in tight and hold her. Hazel had expected the girl to pull away and demand that Hazel not touch her, but instead she buried her face in Hazel's shoulder and wept, her body contracting and then unleashing her sorrow.

A long and shrill beep interrupted them and Kyrie steadied her breathing before checking her watch. "Oh shit, we gotta go." Kyrie said, rubbing her eyes before standing up and offering a hand to Hazel.

Hazel was taken aback by the cursing, but she raised an eyebrow at the girl. "We?" she asked cautiously as she took Kyrie's hand.

"Yeah, you're going to see the seer, right?" Kyrie asked as she turned on the water and started washing her hands before splashing a little water on her face.

"Yes," Hazel answered warily.

Kyrie nodded, "Yeah, so we should get going or we'll be late."

Hazel said nothing, but she decided maybe she should wash her hands too. Kyrie hesitated at the door and looked at Hazel. "Would you mind not…telling anyone about this?"

Hazel nodded, "I wouldn't have even if you hadn't asked me."

Kyrie gave Hazel a little smile and it took Hazel aback. She was sure this girl wasn't always sullen. Still, it was a surprise to see a smile on her face. It transformed her into a different person. "Thank you," she said before asking, "You can't tell I've been crying, right?"

Hazel shook her head, "You look as pretty as Judy Garland."

"I love Judy Garland!" Kyrie exclaimed.

"Really?" This surprised hazel. "You struck me as the type who likes rock and roll and rap music."

Kyrie shrugged, "My love for music isn't confined to genres." She unlocked the door and took Hazel's hand as she opened the door. "Come on, I know a shortcut."

Hazel was jerked back into her senses when Kyrie started running, pulling Hazel along behind her. Hazel wasn't sure where they were going, and she may have been overly hopeful, but she could have sworn that she had just made a friend among the Vikings.

 _Hey guys! I hope you all had a nice holiday! We'll finally be meeting the ominous seer in the next chapter *insert spooky noises and thunder here*. Anyway, I hope this chapter finds you in good health and in a prosperous enough position to put wealth in the pockets of…I don't know why I'm quoting Hamilton to you guys…eh. Anyway, leave me a review! Reviews make author happy._


	8. Hazel II

The looks on Piper's and Annabeth's faces when Hazel ran into the dining hall with Kyrie was priceless. Hazel just shrugged, but that didn't resolve anything.

Erik and Kyrie seemed to have extended their unspoken peace from the funeral. He didn't make a mention about Kyrie and Hazel being the last to arrive. The only other person there that Hazel recognized was the girl with the fake leg, which was reattached and looked good as news. Somehow, Kyrie had held up her end of the deal. The two girls nodded at each other, wordlessly exchanging some information that was cryptic to everyone but them.

No one said much of anything, except for Erik, who offered to have Hazel and her Greek friends join him at the head of the party. Piper accepted graciously and they left Kyrie to bring up the rear. Hazel didn't really like this, but when she hesitated to look back at her new possible friend Kyrie was already connecting the white cord the little man from earlier had given to her. She gestured for Hazel to move ahead, so Hazel did.

If it wasn't the middle of summer then it probably would have already been dark, but the sun was still going strong. They should have enough time to get to wherever they were going and then get before dark.

The climb was steeper and more challenging than Hazel had expected. She knew that Annabeth and Piper were probably dying to hear about how Hazel had ended up arriving through the kitchen doors of the dining hall with Kyrie. Were the tables turned Hazel would have been dying to hear the story, but now wasn't the time. Kyrie had warned them to not blindly trust Erik. This made her wary of him, but it was stupid to try and hold a grudge against him for a bias that Kyrie possessed.

They were about halfway up the mountain when someone tapped Hazel's shoulder. Hazel looked over her shoulder and her throat closed up. It was Sara. The girl whose prosthetic Hazel had ruined…accidentally, of course, but still. Unlike Kyrie, who just looked like a normal person now, Sara was still just as intimidating as before, even without her armor. Her hair was still spiked up and there was a collection of steel knives in her belt and a pair of large battle axes were strapped in a cross on her back. Plus she was more than a head taller than Hazel was. Not that that meant anything. Hazel had taken down giants before…but still. Up this close Hazel could see all the little scars and bruises on the girl's face. She swallowed and asked, "Can I help you?"

Piper and Annabeth were with Hazel, making the rest of the demigods stream awkwardly around them.

Sara wasn't oblivious to Hazel's backup and she raised her hands, exposing her empty palms. "It's okay, I come in peace."

Piper and Annabeth looked at each other uncomfortably before glancing at Hazel, who gave them a tiny shrug in return. "Okay," Hazel began warily. "What did you want?"

"To apologize," Sara said, but not before pointing a menacing finger down at Hazel. "If you tell anyone at camp I'm doing this I will destroy you."

"Uhh," Hazel said, unsure of if this girl was trying to make peace with her or threaten her.

"This just stays between us," Sara said, taking the silence as a queue to keep talking.

Hazel stared awkwardly at the girl before glancing at the others. Most of them had passed them. Hazel wasn't sure if Kyrie had passed too. "Okay," Hazel said uncertainly.

Someone clapped a hand on Sara's shoulder and everyone jumped a bit before turning to see Kyrie pulling something connected to the white cord out of her ear. "Relax, Sara. Hazel won't rat you out."

Sara glanced at Kyrie, before looking back at Hazel. Hazel didn't really like that Kyrie kept coming to her rescue with this girl. She could take care of herself just fine! On the other hand, it was nice that this interaction wasn't coming to blows, as Hazel was really just confused about the purpose for Sara approaching her in the first place.

Sara sighed, as if resigning to a fight before it could start. "Alright, fine. If you say she can be trusted-"

"While we're young," Kyrie said, exasperated, rolling her eyes.

Sara wheeled on the smaller girl, "Back off, Evans. You're not my captain anymore. In case you didn't know, I'm a captain now. I don't answer to you."

Reflexivly, Hazel's fingers closed around the handle of her sword. Kyrie, however, was unimpressed. She raised an eyebrow and fixed Sara with an annoyed stare. Sara met Kyrie's stare, but their eyes were only briefly locked. Sara looked down and sighed before looking at Hazel. "I'm sorry I tried to chop your head off earlier. I was hungry and cranky. Plus I'm really touchy about my stupid leg ever since it got eaten. Anyway, I'm hoping we can bury the hatchet and start over. Are we good?"

Kyrie looked pleased, like she was proud of Sara for being the bigger person and apologizing. Hazel, however, was still wary. It wasn't exactly easier to go from trying to cut peoples' heads off to wanting to make peace. Hazel looked over her shoulder at Piper, who just shrugged. Hazel took that as a sign to accept the apology. "Yes, we're fine."

"Great," Kyrie interrupted, "Now you four had better get to the front before Erik sees you with me and has a stroke."

Sara nodded, "Erik's an ass, but he can't disapprove of your influence that much."

Kyrie scoffed, but said nothing. She shooed them away when no one started hiking.

Hazel glanced back at Kyrie as she left her new friend behind. She felt a bit guilty, but Kyrie made a motion with her sign that said 'keep going, I'm fine'.

The ascent with Sara at their side was slow and quiet. At first. When it seemed that no one was listening Piper cautiously asked, "Hey, Sara…why do Kyrie and Erik seem to hate each other so much?"

Sara was quiet for a minute, as if she was processing the question. Then she laughed, the sound short and harsh, almost like a dog barking. "Oh please. Erik doesn't hate Kyrie. She's too much of a commodity for him for hate her. Kyrie hates Erik, though. And has every right to if you ask me."

Hazel blinked. This surprised her. She wouldn't have thought Erik was the one in the wrong in terms of why they disliked each other. Kyrie was so abrasive and blunt and Erik was such a smooth talker that it was nearly unbelievable to think that he had done something deserving of her hate. "What happened?" Hazel asked, glancing to the front of the group to make sure Erik wasn't listening in.

Sara shrugged, like she was unconcerned who heard. "They dated for about two years," she began.

"They dated?" Annabeth exclaimed, a bit more loudly than she seemed to intend as she clapped a hand over her mouth once the words escaped.

Sara nodded, "Yep. This was before Erik was claimed by Loki. They got together when they were about fourteen. They were friends a long time before then. We all we."

"Who's we?" Hazel asked.

"Oh, all the unclaimed year-rounders of the time. Me, Kyrie, Aiden, James, Erik, Elsa, Harrison. I'd honestly be surprised if you met them all. Anyway, Erik got claimed after he tricked his way out of a nasty scrape with a frost giant. After that his head started getting too fat for his body. He got promoted to camp captain due to a technicality. He and Kyrie were kind of on the rocks before then though. He didn't have time to hang out with any of the unclaimed. Treated us like we were lepers or something. Anyway, Kyrie ended things with him when he took credit for a raid that she saved. He would have completely sunk if it wasn't for the unclaimed ship. He tried to say that it was a collective effort, but still refuses to admit her part in it all. Anyway, she dumped him, very publicly. He didn't like that so they got into this huge fight and Kyrie totally shattered his kneecap before yelling that she was dumping his ass so that everyone could hear it and he couldn't say that he dumped her to save face. It was the closest thing to a soap opera we've ever gotten up here." Sara chukled as if this amused her. Piper and Hazel glanced at each other, exchanging concerned looks. It was always clear that they weren't with Greeks and Romans anymore, but the Nordics were a completely different ballgame. "Anyway," Sara continued, "things became a lot less…pleasant for the unclaimed. Erik treats them like crap. He doesn't let them go on quests unless the whole fleet is going, which is just stupid because Kyr has been on way more quests than him."

"Isn't there an adult in charge?" Piper asked. "I mean, I can't imagine how much of a crap show it would be if there weren't supervisors at Camp Halfblood."

"Or something like the Senate, maybe?" Hazel added. "It doesn't seem smart that Erik should be in charge, especially if he's as vindictive as you say."

Sara laughed, "No, that's just luck. Usually Magni is in charge."

"Who?" Piper asked.

"Thor's son. God of strength," Annabeth answered.

Sara smiled, "You know your shit. I can appreciate that. Anyway, Magni has been missing for a few years. Got in a fight with Hel. She won't say where he is or what she's done with him, but he'll turn up."

From the front of the group Erik shouted, so that everyone could hear. "We're here, everyone. Disarm."

Everyone started peeling off their weapons, except for Piper, Hazel, and Annabeth, who looked confused. "Why're we disarming?" Annabeth asked.

Sara put both of her axes down on the ground before putting her shield on top of them. "It's unwise to approach the seer while armed."

Hazel began disarming, though she was taking her time doing so. "Why?"

"The last person who approached the seer while armed lost his mind," Sara answered. "He assumes you're there to force him to tell the future so…he tells you. Fills you mind with so many visions and versus until there's nothing left."

After the explaination the demigods were quicker about disarming. Hazel could tell by the way that her friends were putting their hands at their hips that they were uncomfortable without their weapons. She wasn't one to talk, though. Everyone in their party seemed uneasy. Even Sara looked uncomfortable as she parted with the last of her knives.

Sluggishly, the group moved forward and funneled into a cave. Hazel expected to feel more at ease underground, but she didn't. The walls were wet to the touch and it smelled muggy and confined, like air hadn't circulated in the space for centuries. They moved in about ten feet and the walls became covered in carvings of some sort of ancient text. If it wasn't Latin or ancient greek then it would have been easier, but this? This was completely different. It took Hazel a little while to realize that the symbols on the wall were the same as the ones on Kyrie's shirt.

Hazel was occupied with studying the symbols that she ran into Piper, who had stopped dead in her tracks in front of her. Hazel wasn't sure why until she looked at what had caught her friend's attention. She gasped and clapped her hands to her mouth to silence herself. This person, if it was a person, couldn't be the seer. It seemed to be a man, or was a man once. He looked more like a corpse than like a person. He was old and pale with symbols drawn on his hands, forehead, and cheeks and his eyes were sewn shut with thick, black thread. He was naked from the waist up and his chest and arms were covered in the symbols as well, only these were bright red like fresh scars.

Erik fell onto his knees and held his hands up, palms toward the seer. Everyone followed in suit, Hazel and her friends being the last on their feet.

"Seer of the Asgardians," Erik began humbly, "we come seeking prophecy, should the gods see it fit to give it."

The seer's head popped up and if he had eyes they would have fallen upon Erik. He put his hands up, just a breath away from Erik's. In a mangled and croaky, but strong and unwavering voice, the seer opened his mouth and revealed a mouth filled with teeth stained black and purple gums. "Voyagers of the Warm Sea join us. Seven in a ship that flies shall rally with the strongest warrior among the sailors here." The seer took Erik's wrist in such a swift motion that it started everyone. The seer gave him a smile, which only made him look more unsettling. "No child of Loki shall leave port for this quest." The seer let go of Erik and put his palm up again. "The captain to lead shall be decided by the Trials of Pain. They shall lead five with the seven and voyage to the Ancient Lands, where the head of Jormungand lies. They will tie him and save us all, or beckon Ragnarok. A brand will be given soon that will only cause distress, but without it we shall all be doomed. This mission rests in the hands of fire, and victory can only be found when they reunite. This quest brings a new age with it. One with a new seer to take a path different from that of my fathers and I. She will save us all, or doom us forever."

The seer stiffened for a moment before he fell back into a collection of baskets and books. Some of the girls weren't able to stifle surprised screams. Everyone stood and took a few steps rapidly. Appearently this didn't happen often. The only one with enough nerve to approach the seer was Sara. She pressed her fingers against his throat and looked up at her companions in horror.

"The seer is dead," She told them.

 _Happy New Year everyone! I'm sick so instead of getting wasted and having fun I'm writing fanfiction for you guy. I hope 2017 is better for all of us than 2016 was. This year was a doozy. Thank god it's over. Leave me a review if you liked it, or if you hated it. I like all reviews. Happy New Year!_


	9. Piper

Piper wasn't sure if she was alright with leaving the seer dead in his cave. However, everyone else seemed more eager to leave than she was. Hazel was the only one who didn't treat the seer's death like some kind of disaster. She was honestly eager to get back and go to sleep. She just hoped that boys had found some place. She wouldn't have minded sleeping in the ship, but staying among the Vikings made it easier to make peace. That was the nature of this mission after all.

Only now with the other side of the prophecy that made things a bit more complex. They were supposed to go to the ancient lands…again. Piper really hoped that didn't mean Greece and Rome. There had been some high points of their trip, but it wasn't one she wanted to make again. However, this could have meant the Nordic ancient lands. Piper wasn't really sure where that was, but she was sure Annabeth would have a better idea once they were somewhere they could speak more freely.

They were about three-quarters of the way back when Piper worked up the nerve to ask Sara a question that was irking her. Sara had been staying close to them, keeping a protective eye over them. Piper appreciated it, but she couldn't help but feel like the girl was trying to make up for trying to decapitate Hazel. Not that that was a problem, it just brought the memory of the girl raising an axe to Hazel while she was defenseless to the forefront of her mind.

"Why is everyone freaked out about the seer dying?" she asked, her voice low.

"Seers don't just die," Sara answered harshly. "I'm sure your oracle person doesn't die."

"They're supposed to," Annabeth answered. "We just barely got a new oracle because Hades put a curse on the old one. Before Rachel our oracle was basically dead."

Sara seemed confused by this. "That's so strange. I imagine it's better though. Strange things happen when mortals live too long."

"Like the seer?" Hazel asked. She tripped over a tree root, not paying attention to where she was go.

Sara stuck her arm out and stopped Hazel from eating dirt. "Yeah," Sara answered once Hazel was sturdy on her feet. "The seer has been live for…at least two-thousand years. Once upon a time he was supposed to be very handsome, a favorite of the gods. A demigod, like us, but he retreated into his cave. Mutilated his skin with runes about the future and the past. He plucked out his own eyes and sewed the lids shut."

Piper couldn't keep the horror off her face. "Good gods," she said.

Sara scoffed, "Yeah, you've got that right. Ah, we're finally back."

Piper and her friends looked up over the trees and saw the bank of the river and the clearing between the cabins.

"Great, now we get to go and tell everyone the good news and watch as chaos takes over the camp."

The voice made them jump and they turned to see Kyrie behind them, glaring down at the camp, an earbud in her right ear. Piper had noticed Kyrie was wearing them on the way up as well. She was pretty sure that these headphones were what the dwarf had given her earlier, but she didn't ask. Plus she couldn't figure out why a dwarf would make headphones.

Sara nodded, "At least we have the Trials by Pain tomorrow. That'll be fun."

"It'll be fun to see your face when I kick your ass," Kyrie said jokingly.

"Oh, it's like that?" Sara asked. It was clear that she was amused by the declaration. "You realize I get a handicap because of my leg."

Kyrie scoffed, "Handicap my ass. Before Bari finished making your leg you spent two weeks walking and fighting and doing everything on your hands because, as you said, you had shit to do."

"You can walk on your hands?" Hazel asked, sounding impressed.

Sara nodded, but Kyrie took her friend's silence as an invitation to brag about her. "Sara was a gymnast before she lost her leg. Got the gold on the beam at World's. She used to rip off skin on her hands on the bars for fun. The Trials by Pain are a cake walk for her."

"Shut up," Sara said, lowering her voice dangerously. Apparently Sara didn't like people singing her praises.

"Um," Piper injected warily, "what exactly are the Trials by Pain?"

"Only the ultimate challenge of badass-ery," Sara said. "It's a chance to prove your individual worth."

"We also have capture the flag to prove the worth of your crew," Kyrie added.

Piper still wasn't sure what to think of these girls. It was easy to prefer Erik to them, despite Kyrie's warning to be wary of him. Once they reached the bottom Kyrie bid them farewell, watching Erik ask she left to make sure he was busy with his responsibilities at the front of the group.

"You guys should probably head to the dining hall," Sara recommended after Kyrie left. "Erik is going to want to give the news about the prophecy to everyone."

"We need to find the guys," Annabeth said.

Sara pointed over Annabeth's shoulder to a statue of who Piper assumed was Odin in the middle of the clearing. Leo was sitting at the base of the god's statue, fiddling with something. Frank was talking to the James guy they had talked to before and on either side of him Percy and Jason were waving at them. "I'll see you later," Sara said before leaving.

Piper and her friends waved goodbye to Sara before moving over to meet with the guys again. Leo waved at them, but didn't deviate from his work. Percy wrapped an arm around Annabeth and pulled her close, but was still talking to James with Frank, Piper wasn't sure about what. Hazel sat on the ground next to Leo and asked him what he was making. Jason pulled away from the conversation and wrapped Piper in a tight embrace.

She sighed once she was in his arms. She didn't realize how tense she was until he held her and she relaxed.

Jason picked up on this and glanced down at her. "You okay Pipes?"

She nodded and pulled away, reluctant to do so. She looked up at him and forced a smile, "Yeah, I'm okay. Just a little overwhelmed."

He smiled and kissed her forehead, "You're doing great."

She smiled up at him. He couldn't know how much his fait in her meant. "Any luck with the locals?"

Jason frowned and glanced away, "No. James here is the only one whose really spoken to us about potential sleeping quarters and he says the only ones who can offer us room and board is one of the high council or a captain offers us asylum. They won't kick us off, but they won't like us staying here without an invitation. The captains are gone and the only other people we met on the council didn't want to invite us."

Piper frowned, but she wasn't willing to give up hope so easily. "The seer gave them a prophecy that talks about five of their demigods going on a quest with us. I'm sure we'll be given asylum."

"If not, James says we can spend the night on the Argo 3 for the night down the river away from the camp and then come back in the morning," Jason said. "We won't want that, though. It's time we could spend building relationships."

"We'll just have to hope for the best," Piper said, though she didn't like that. If she had to she would have to charm speak someone. She was hoping that it wouldn't come to that, though. She wanted to build alliances, but she didn't want to force the Vikings into it. Plus, charm speak could wear off and it wouldn't be good if that happened.

Shortly after everyone made their way to the dining hall. James stayed with them until they were there and Piper and her friends pressed themselves against a wall to try and be inconspicuous. He bid them farewell and joined Kyrie, who had come in with the tall, dark haired boy who had held her bow at the funeral, the girl who had come up to James before the service was done. The younger girl caught Piper looking at her and she waved at her. Piper cautiously waved back.

Once everyone was in the hall, hardly filling the vast room half way, Erik called for quiet near the front. Piper and her friends listened as he relayed the message. Leo and Jason occasionally asked her questions to clarify the experience and she answered them as quietly as she could. The collective reacted about the same way that the captains had. There was discord and outrage and fear. However, as Sara had predicted, everyone became more zealous when the Trials by Pain were mentioned. When Erik (reluctantly) mentioned that no child of Loki would go on the quest three other campers shouted in outrage before they started sulking.

Before the meeting ended Piper cleared her throat and asked if she could have a minute. Erik looked a little taken aback, but he obliged her, stepping aside so she could have the floor.

She stood in front of the group and swallowed before saying, "First off, on behalf of my friends and myself I would like to offer our condolences for you and your seer. We know this is a trying time and we would like to be supportive." She glanced at Jason and he nodded. Piper steeled her nerves and lifted her chin before saying, "I know it might be inconvenient, but my crew and I would be unknowably grateful if anyone would be willing to take us in for the night."

The room went quiet save for low whispers. Kyrie was talking to James and Sara was talking to another girl with black long hair and a seemingly permanent scowl upon her face. Some people just shook their heads. Others were quiet and uncomfortable.

"They have a place in my home."

Everyone perked up and looked for the source of the voice. It was the woman who Percy had met earlier. She looked annoyed that no one else had spoken up, but she stood and brushed off her jeans and scanned the room. "There will always be a place for guests at my hearth. I'm a bit disappointed in all of you."

The group shuffled uncomfortably, but the woman wasn't fazed by it. She held out a hand to Piper. "Come on, dear. We'll get you and your friends set up for the night." She glanced at Erik, her expression challenging, "Unless you have something else to say?"

Erik shook his head and the collection of people started to file out of the dining hall. Piper could have sworn she saw Kyrie mouthing the words 'thank you' to the woman that was leading Piper and her friends away.

Piper had been expecting that they would be going into one of the main cabins, but they went about thirty feet into the woods beyond the clearing and found themselves in front of a house. Just an ordinary, boring two story house with a blue door, white walls, and black shingles. It was a pretty big house, sure, but it was still just a house.

Inside, the house had hardwood floors, a piano and a drum set in the corner of the living room, as well as a few guitars, acoustic and electric alike, and even a mandolin. There was a sofa and a big dining room table and pictures…everywhere. There were some in frames, a few old posters for 'Lupita Revira, the Songbird'. There were pictures of gymnasts, dancers, singers, painters with their work. Piper thought she even saw a DJ. Beyond these were just…regular pictures. Kids at Disneyland. Kids sailing in their Viking boats…whatever the Viking boats were called. She wasn't really sure. There were people snowboarding, there was a family reunion, there were people boating and water skiing. Piper knew that people could be obsessed with posting pictures on their facebook walls, but this was something else.

"Sorry it's a bit of a mess," the woman began once Frank shut the door behind him, being the last to come in. "There's a basement downstairs if you all want to sleep in the big room down there. If not I'm sure some of the kids wouldn't mind sharing rooms with you."

"Kids?" Percy asked, looking at the photos and paintings, "I knew Kyrie was your daughter, but how many kids do you have, Elena?"

The woman chuckled, "Kyrie is my only child by birth, but all the unclaimed kids live here."

As if on cue, the door shot open and a tall boy came running in, smiling devilishly with a dagger in his hand. Piper recognized him as the same boy who had given Kyrie her bow at Aiden's funeral. "You'll never get it back, Elsa!"

The girl from the mess hall plowed through Percy and Jason, sending the boys into the wall. Her black hair, which had once been pristine, was now in disarray. She had seemed so calm and pleasant and kind when Piper saw her before. Now this girl looked like she was consumed by rage and out for blood. A thought that was confirmed when the tiny girl bellowed, "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU, HARRISON!"

Elena tensed in fury. "Both of you two, stop it!" Elena yelled over the chaos as Elsa chased Harrison around the living room. Elsa thought she'd gotten him behind the drumset, but he was really tall. He hopped on the stool behind the base drum and used the new position to leap over the instrument and peel down the stairs, grinning manically. Elsa screamed in frustration and started after him, yelling more death threats. It was like an older brother and a younger sister in a spat. With their complexion and dark hair they could have been siblings for all Piper knew.

Elena groaned in frustration and buried her face in her hands.

The door behind them shut and everyone looked back to see Kyrie and James enter. James dropped his battleaxes and shield on the floor like an ordinary kid would shed their backpack after school.

"Weapons go in the armory, not on my floor!" Elena scolded James, who cast his eyes down in shame before collection his shield and axes and putting them up carefully in the closet.

Kyrie hung up her sword in the closet as well, but she didn't have a shield to put away. Harrison laughed from below and Elsa screamed again, the sound clear and distinct even with an entire floor between them. Kyrie glanced at James and he sighed. "You make the popcorn, I'll go and take care of Harrison and Ellie."

"Popcorn?" the question came from Leo, who looked confused.

Piper was surprised when Kyrie gave him a small smile. "We always have a movie night before one of us has to do a Trial by Pain."

Without another word, Kyrie went down the stairs and screamed for Harrison and Elsa to shut up. Silence followed and Elena shook her head. "I wish I knew how she got those two to listen." She heaved a sigh before she perked up and looked back at Piper and her friends. "Anyway, I hope you kids like musicals. Make yourselves at home."

 _Hey everyone! Sorry this chapter's kind of...anticlimactic, but the Trials by Pain are in the next chapter! Or the one after that one. I'm not sure which yet, but one of the two. Those are going to be interesting. Anyway, I'll catch you on the flipside!_


	10. Piper II

Piper had been about half way through a cup of tea that Lulu Revira had given her when she started nodding off. The plan had been to stay up and build a rapport with their hosts. Elena noted Piper's tiredness and sent her straight to bed. She and Annabeth and Hazel were to share Elsa's room and Elsa would sleep with Kyrie. Leo and Jason would sleep in James' room and Percy and Frank would be in Harrison's room.

Piper examined Elsa's room for a moment before crawling into one of the bedrolls on the floor. For such a young girl Elsa seemed to have some advanced interests. There was a copy of Grey's Anatomy open on the desk, a human skeleton in the corner that almost scared her half to death. There were diagrams of body parts on the walls, a poster of brain cells, assuming the label was correct, and some stuffed animals hanging on the wall. She examined the tags still on the stuffed animals and found out that they were in fact plushy versions of disease cells. She was amused to find that the plush version of mono was pink and had big, long eyelashes. It was more like the bedroom of a medical student with a liking for stuffed animals rather than a fourteen-year-old girl.

Still, when Piper laid down, she fell asleep swiftly to the sound of her new housemates singing an unfamiliar song in one voice below her. It wasn't a bad sound at all.

When she woke up Annabeth and Hazel were already getting dressed and ready for the day. Hazel told her that they had decided to let Piper sleep in a bit.

When they arrived in the kitchen they were surprised to find everyone in high spirits, which was strange since one of their numbers was to go through the Trials by Pain today. Even Kyrie seemed to be in a better mood, declaring that in the event she died James had right to her ship while they ate waffles that Elena had provided.

Percy opened his mouth to ask a question, probably about the Trials by Pain, when Lulu announced that it was time for them to go.

Leo was the first on his feet and at her side. It was kind of funny to see him like this. He didn't seem like the type to get star struck, yet here he was. Piper assumed it was because she was a reminder of his mom or something like that.

She looked at Percy and shrugged, noting his disappointed look. They followed, Piper taking Jason's hand before they left, and she gave Elena a smile as they passed her on the way out. Elena smiled back and took up the rear of the train.

They weren't the only ones heading into the forest. Piper was worried they were going back to the seer's cave, but they went to a different path.

The air was rippling with excitement as campers chattered amongst themselves. Some of them were even placing bets! She was taken aback that they would be so aloof, even cheery, about their friends having to do something involving pain. Some campers ran past and wished Kyrie luck. One of them even shouted, "Kick Bane's ass, Kyrie!" Kyrie, in turn, yelled, "Bane's not who I'm worried about!"

It all seemed to be in good fun!

Harrison was annoying Elsa again, who had her nose in a book before he took it away from her and told her that learning about cancer cells wasn't as important as the Trials by Pain. With as much as he teased her Piper could have sworn that he had a crush on her. Once that thought entered her head she couldn't stop thinking about her younger half siblings in the Aphrodite cabin squealing 'OTP!' and working on a 'ship name' for them. Helsa or Elrison, probably. More likely Helsa. Some of her siblings fondly referred to her and Jason and Jasper. Annabeth and Percy were Percabeth, Frank and Hazel were Frazel, and Leo and Calypso had been Caleo.

That thought made her wince. She looked for Leo and found him picking Lulu's brain. He seemed less star struck by her now, more fascinated. She wished she knew what they were talking about, but Piper's Spanish sucked. She was glad he had a distraction, at least. If he didn't want to talk about it she wouldn't make him.

"Is that the Trials by Pain?" she heard Percy ask from in front of her.

"That's it," Elsa answered. She had seized her book back and was hugging it protectively against her as she walked. She had placed herself between Piper and Frank, probably wanting to get away from Harrison. Piper didn't blame her or mind. Elsa seemed like a sweet girl…when you weren't trying to steal her weapons or books.

Jason readjusted his glasses on his nose and looked at the series of structures in front of them. "It looks kind of like American Ninja Warrior."

Elsa chuckled and bent forward and crane her neck to get a better look at him. "Well duh. Where do you think they got the idea?"

Jason glanced at Piper and they shrugged at each other. Still, Jason's description was pretty spot on. It look like American Ninja Warrior, but vamped up. There were rope swings and climbing walls and balance beams and complicated variations of monkey bars and a lot of other stuff Piper couldn't even wrap her brain around. Unlike American Ninja Warrior there were occasionally plumes of fire jetting out from the climbing walls. Not that hat was too unnerving, it was like the climbing wall at camp. Other obstacles shifted, changing from solid floor into holes that opened up to a pool of water below. There was also a pen filled with what looked like hellhounds. They were about the same size as Percy's enormous dog, but they looked more vicious. They looked like hungry giant wolves and Piper was a bit uncomfortable, wary about what their purpose might be.

Erik was already in place in a commentator's booth next to an older man who looked very similar to Erik. If Piper didn't know any better she would have guessed that was Erik's dad. He looked more comfortable in his place than Erik did and his smile was a bit smug.

They were following James, who had claimed to have snagged excellent seats when the man from the booth was suddenly in front of them. In surprise, Piper jumped and seized Jason's arm. Elsa ducked behind Piper and peeked out from behind her. She could see Annabeth and Percy reach for their swords, but they didn't draw them. Upon closer inspection, the man looked…exactly like Tom Huddleston from The Avengers. Piper only knew because some of her siblings had posters of him as Loki. Not that this guy was Loki…was he?

"Oh, be calm, my friends," the man said, raising his hands to show that he meant them to ill will. "I only wanted to greet you myself. After all, what kind of a host would I be if I didn't welcome newcomers as unique as yourselves? I might be a bit late, but my presence was…last minute."

Piper blinked at the man and glanced at her friends, all of them looking as confused as she was. "Um…thank you for your hospitality," Piper said for her friends.

The man swept his arms out and lowered his head in a bow, "The pleasure is mine, Child of Aphrodite."

"Loki!"

The voice belonged to Kyrie, and she looked furious as she marched the distance between them.

"Loki?" Percy repeated nervously.

Loki didn't seem at all fazed by Kyrie's temper. He looked at Percy, smiling charmingly. "Indeed. I've grown fond of this particular form since that…absurd film, Thor came out. Still, I must put credit where it's due. Plus, this fellow is rather handsome, don't you agree?"

Before anyone could answer Kyrie arrived, flanked by James, who tried to hold her back. Kyrie ripped her arm out of her friend's hold before facing the god.

"Ah, if it isn't my favorite," Loki said, reaching out and pinching Kyrie's cheek playfully. "Just who I wanted to talk to."

Kyrie glared and pulled her face away from his fingers. "If you wanted to talk to me why would you approach them?"

Loki smiled at her and clasped his hands behind his back, "Why, to get your attention, of course." Kyrie bristled at this and Loki chuckled. "You're always so protective of newcomers." Loki glanced at Piper and her friends. "The outsiders. You know they all have a place…but not you. You know you're the only demigod I've met whose father is so…indifferent."

"Did you need something?" Kyrie cut him off, probably not eager to hear about her father, which was understandable where he had gone so long without claiming her.

Loki sighed, "Always so to the point…that is one reason I like you." Piper noticed Kyrie's jaw clench in a disgusted fashion, but if Loki noticed he made no sign of it. The god continued, "As I said, you're my favorite competing today. I would usually grant favor to one of my own, but as the seer said, none of my children are destined to go on this quest. I wanted to extend you a wish of luck."

"Thanks," Kyrie replied, her voice short and ungrateful.

"I would appreciate a token in return," Loki said, leaning towards her, still smiling.

Kyrie seemed to understand. She started rummaging through her pockets. She pulled out an iPod and the headphones that the dwarf had given her. She came up with nothing else. She felt at her belt and found an axe and a sword, but Piper had a feeling Kyrie wouldn't willingly part with any of these things. Kyrie shoved the iPod back in her pocket and there was a bit of a chorus of surprise when Kyrie peeled off her green Camp Midgard shirt. Frank made a show of covering his face with his hands. Jason casually looked away. Hazel said 'Oh good heavens' and started fanning herself with her hands, her cheeks burning from second hand embarrassment. Leo, trying to avert his eyes, got to work tinkering with something from his toolbelt. Percy and Annabeth exchanged concerned looks. Piper was the only one who didn't look away as Kyrie held out the shirt to the god. He took it gingerly and Piper couldn't keep the disgust off her face when he brought the fabric up to his face and inhaled it deeply. Before leaving the god leaned in close to her and said, "Good luck little girl." He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before he left.

"Well he seems…" Annabeth began awkwardly.

"Like an arrogant, egotistical, passive aggressive fuck." Kyrie finished, glaring up at the booth where Loki now sat next to Erik, who looked furious and uncomfortable next to his father.

Hazel gasped at the curse like she had just been burned. Lulu chided Kyrie in rushed Spanish and her granddaughter just glared at her grandma. Piper was surprised when Kyrie didn't say another word. She just shed took off her belt with her weapons on it and handed it to James before taking off her shorts and handing them over. She was now wearing just her converse sneakers, black spanks, and a pink and white sports bra. It was a little surprising. Piper hadn't pegged Kyrie as the type who liked pink, but it didn't really matter. She gathered her hair up into a ponytail and started to leave when Hazel wished her luck. Kyrie thanked her and left without another word.

James led them to the bleachers where he had found seats. Harrison and Elsa were already there, Elsa tucked into her book as Harrison badgered her with questions. Shortly after they were seated they heard Loki's disembodied voice.

"Hello friends. I'm Loki, and I'll be the commentator of today's Trials by Pain!" There was some scattered applause and some cheers. It was like the crowd was uncertain of the narrator of the trails of the day. "Now, you all know the stakes! The winner of today's trials will be leading five other demigods in a quest to the ancient lands with our new guests! Now, our competitors today are Bane MacMillan, Son of Thor, Frieda Hawthorn, daughter of Freya, Holden Mars, son of Ullr, Sara Hart, Daughter of Tyr, Mark Jensen, son of Hlin, and Valkyrie Evans, unclaimed." There were cheers for all the competitors, even Kyrie. Apparently not everyone in the camp disliked her like Erik did. After the cheers bated Loki shouted, "Let the trials begin!"

Bane was first, and when Piper saw him she thought that Kyrie had been stupid to say she wasn't worried about him as a competitor. He was huge. If he stood next to Jason, he would probably dwarf him easily. That was at first, though. He made it past the stepping stones, but when he got to the propeller, an obstacle that looked like a helicopter blade that spun when it was jumped on, he lost his grip and splashed into the water below. When he came back up he was livid. He crawled out of the water and stormed away from the course. Frieda hadn't been much better. She looked like a Barbie doll with blond thick hair and big blue eyes and she was covered head to toe in pink. Her shorts were pink, her sneakers were pink, her shirt was pink. She didn't even make it past the stepping stones, as one of them shifted too far away. She fell into the water and came back up sulking, her lower lip quivering like she was about to cry.

Holden had been better, but he still didn't make it to the end. He almost did too, and he would have if it wasn't for the warped wall. He had almost gotten over the top, but he had not paced himself and over shot it. He clung to the wall with all his strength, but his momentum tugged him back and he fell. He cussed, but unlike Bane, he took his failure with dignity and didn't storm off like a child. Sara was up next. She passed all the trials. The pen of wolves seemed to be there as a test of bravery and she met it brilliantly. The wolves growled at her and she roared back at them so loudly that the beasts backed away, ears down, long enough for her to run past them unscathed. She only had something called the spider climb left where she scaled two walls placed near each other with only her hands and feet. She stumbled once or twice, but she was still the first to reach the top. Piper and her friends cheered for her and Sara pumped her fist in the air a few times. Piper was incredibly impressed. Metal leg or no, nothing slowed Sara down. On a wooden board behind her Sara's time etched itself into the wood as Loki congratulated her on her time of two minutes and thirty-one seconds.

The only ones left now were Mark and Kyrie. Mark was a tall and gangly boy with red hair and freckles. He looked nervous, but determined all at once. When he was given the queue to start he did something no one expected. He stepped forward and simply jumped in the water.

"Well I'll be damned…Mark has forfeited his chance at the quest," Loki said over the invisible magic speakers.

Piper looked at Elsa, whose mouth was gaping at the sight. She'd set her book aside for the Trials and was fully invested in them. "Does that not happen usually.

Elsa shook her head and looked up at Piper. "No. Nobody's ever forfeited the Trials by Pain before," the younger girl answered. "Mark is usually really level-headed. He's a really good captain. I never imagined he would actually give up a chance at a quest. Especially one like this."

"So, that leaves it down to Sara or Kyrie now," Piper said.

Elsa nodded, "Yeah. It's anyone's guess who'll have the faster time."

"Those two were always the favorites from the start though," James said as they watched Mark get out of the water and towel himself off.

Kyrie was next. She adjusted her hair into a tighter knot on the top of her hair before the whistle to begin rang. She almost lost her grip on the propeller and had to go around a second time to grab the rope swing on the other end, but she made up her missed time on the rock wall. A plume of fire shot at her and she held firmly to the wall until the flames died and she continued, unbothered by the lines of smoke left on her skin from the close contact. She didn't scale the warped wall in one go like Sara had, but on her second try she used the momentum to her advantage and reached the top. Next came the wolves, which Loki referred to as 'Fenrir's Pups'. Unlike Sara, who had screamed at them, Kyrie entered the pen with her head held high. One of the wolves snarled at her, but she reached out and scratched its chin in the perfect spot. The wolf froze and fell onto his back, his tongue out and his tail wagging. The others eyed her in awe and others posed like they were ready to play. She scratched some of their ears as she moved past them and they howled sadly as she left them and she howled back, which only made the wolves whine more. Then came the spider wall. She scaled it with more confidence than Sara had and didn't falter. She rolled onto the platform where Sara was still waiting, and she slammed her palm into the buzzer at the end.

"TWO MINUTES AND NINETEEN SECONDS!" Loki's voice bellowed through the arena. A roar of cheers drowned out the god's voice and Sara hugged Kyrie in congratulations. All the unclaimed were on their feet, jumping and screaming for their captain.

Kyrie want panting and grinning and Piper found herself clapping along with the others. She was glad that Kyrie was going to be leading rather than Sara. Sure, they'd buried the hatchet with Sara and Piper was sure they'd be good friends, but Kyrie was still the better choice when it came to being a leader.

Everything seemed to be fine until Kyrie doubled in on herself. The fist she had been raising in the air in a sign of pride and victory came down near her face and she stared at her wrist, wincing, and trying to keep pain off her face.

The crowd silenced, leaving behind an eerie thick quiet.

Elsa's hands raised to her face and she covered her mouth, looking sad and awed. "She's being claimed."

Piper glanced at her friends, who were just as confused at her, before she looked back at the platform where Kyrie and Sara stood. Sara had a cautious hand on Kyrie's shoulder, but the smaller girl collapsed onto the ground, clutching her wrist into her chest. The silence was pierced by a guttural and agonized scream that came from the girl's mouth.

"Someone get a healer!" Sara shouted as she dropped onto her metal knee and tried in vain to do something to sooth her friend.

"Elsa, go!" Harrison snapped, leaning over Piper to shake the younger girl into her senses. "With all the crap you read about doctors and stuff you're as good as a healer."

Elsa looked surprised, probably because Harrison was actually being sort of nice to her. She nodded, a new resolve on her face. She held her book out to Piper. "Would you put this back in my room if you're back home before I am?"

Piper nodded and took the book, "Of course."

Elsa smiled, "Thanks," she said briefly before heading for the platform with a couple of other campers.

"Does being claimed always hurt?" Jason asked as he ran his hand over Camp Jupiter tattoo.

Harrison shook his head, "From what I've heard it smarts a bit, but not like that."

"What can we do?" Annabeth asked, staring up at Kyrie who was now weeping. It was quite a shift from the strong and kind of rude girl they had come acquainted with.

Everyone exchanged glances. Leo was staring up at Kyrie, looking uncomfortable with the sight. Hazel seemed most concerned of the seven, but she was also closest to Kyrie…Piper still wasn't sure how that happened, but it was plain to see that they had formed a friendship. Frank held Hazel's hand, sensing her sadness and discomfort at her friend's pain. Percy and Annabeth looked totally freaked out, which was understandable.

Elena was the first to stand, looking like she fought the urge to cry. "All we can do is hope she's all right."

Piper frowned and looked up at the platform. Prophecy had declared that Kyrie was going to be the one to lead the Vikings on the quest alongside the Greeks and Romans. How could she do that if she was incapacitated? Prospects seemed bleak. Still, she followed Elena's advice and hoped for the best.

 _*insert dramatic noises here* Okay, well…those were the Trials by Pain…I did not binge watch American Ninja Warrior before writing this. I'm lying, I totally did. Also this is my longest chapter in this bad boy so far. Way to go me on upping the word count like a boss, for your pleasure. Anyway, that's….it. Thanks for reading! Don't forget to follow and review if you liked it or had questions or anything. Much love, byyyyye!_


	11. Leo III

Leo gave Lupita Revira and Elena two cups of tea that James had prepared and the two older women thanked him before tucking into the beverages. The environment back at Elena's house was tense as they waited for news about Lupita's granddaughter. It had almost been an hour since Jason helped get the girl off the platform and Elsa had helped load her onto a stretcher and rushed her off to the infirmary, wherever that was. There was a lot of gossip, and a lot of questions about who the girl's godly parent was. Despite being in excruciating pain somehow Kyrie had managed to keep her mark from prying eyes.

Harrison and James seemed nervous, like something terrible was going to happen since Kyrie had been claimed. Piper was deep in conversation with Annabeth, Percy, and Hazel, discussing their plans for the quest. Their conversations weren't what Leo was interested in, though. He tried to not listen in on Lupita Revira and Elena, as they probably wanted their privacy since they spoke in rushed Spanish, probably overlooking the fact that he spoke the language. Lupita asked her daughter, for what must have been the hundredth time, who her granddaughter's father was. Elena, in turn, insisted that it wasn't for her to say and if Kyrie wanted to tell everyone then she could in her own time. What really caught Leo's attention was when Lupita said, "For her sake, I hope you didn't do what I think you did."

What could Elena have done? Or who could she have done, more like? Leo felt bad for just thinking that crude joke, but at least he wasn't stupid enough to say it out loud.

The room jolted into attention when the door slammed open. Everyone looked at the door, perhaps expecting to see Kyrie. They didn't. Elsa was back and nursing a bloody nose.

"Elsa?" James asked, his voice concerned.

The girl looked up and gave him a halfhearted wave, not removing her hand from her nose. "Can someone get me some ice?"

Harrison was the first to grant her request, rushing off to the freezer.

"Are you okay?" Leo asked. It was the first exchange of words he'd really had with the girl. Leo hadn't really bonded with the Nordic demigods, save for James, who seemed cool.

Elsa rolled her eyes, "Oh yeah I'm great, aside from the fact that Kyrie probably broke my nose."

"Kyrie did this?" Elena asked, gripping the arms of her chair.

Elsa nodded and silently took the ice Harrison had wrapped in a dish towel before pressing it against her nose and pulling her bloodied hand away. "It was an accident, but yeah. And it's not really broken, I was just being a whiny baby."

"Is she alright?" Hazel questioned, clearly fighting off the urge to step forward. She probably didn't want to crowd the girl.

"Kyrie's fine…now," Elsa answered, brushing Harrison away as he tried to help her into an arm chair across from Lupita and Elena. "She did this trying to get away. Karen got too close to seeing Kyrie's mark and I guess she panicked. Last anyone saw of her she was riding Bear into the forest."

"Who's Bear?" Percy asked.

"Her direwolf," Elena answered crossing the room to make sure that Elsa was, indeed, alright, despite the younger girl's squirms and insistence of wellbeing.

"So…she has a pet wolf named Bear?" Leo asked slowly.

"What were you expecting her to name a direwolf?" Harrison asked, his tone implying the stupidity of the idea. "Fido?"

Leo went quiet, but he kept it to himself that he still thought it was kind of a stupid name.

Elsa pulled the ice away before setting it aside, satisfied that her nose had stopped bleeding. "Everyone's heading out to look for her. Sara and Fang are working on tracking her, but you know Kyrie. Unless she wants to be found she won't make it easy."

"We'll all help look for her," Annabeth volunteered.

"She might be in the water," Elena said, "I'll check the river bed"

Percy nodded, "I should go with Elena. We can check the riverbed faster together."

Annabeth nodded, kind of like she was giving him permission. "Me and the girls can go and check out any caves around. Hazel knows her stuff when it comes to underground."

"I know a few caves she likes to visit," Elsa said, "I'll go with you."

"You should rest," Harrison insisted. Elsa didn't pay it any mind though. She pushed his face away with her bloody hand, leaving red finger prints on his cheek as she joined the girls to wash her hands and get some water bottles.

"I'll look from above," Frank said, slipping his bow onto his back.

"Me too," Jason agreed.

"Uh…I'll take to the skies too," Leo said hesitantly, eager to be useful instead of be lumped into the last available group probably staying behind.

"How are you planning to do that?" Harrison asked, scowling as he wiped Elsa's blood off his face.

Leo shrugged, "I have a dragon, obviously."

Festus was thrilled to finally get a chance to stretch his wings. He crawled out of the ship and stretched his wings while the Argo 3 closed back up. Some of the campers of Camp Midgard screamed when they saw the dragon. Others stared in awe, Harrison being among them.

"What the hell is that thing?" He asked, taking a few steps back as Leo climbed onto Festus's back.

Festus made an insulted nose and smoke plumed out of his nostrils.

Leo patted his dragon's head to calm him down, "Calm down, buddy." He looked to Harrison once the dragon had stopped threatening to spew fire at the campers. "This 'thing' is my good friend, Festus. I built him…well…most of him."

"You built it?" James asked, looked at Festus, awed. Leo nodded and James laughed, the sound low and deep, billowing through the silence. "I'll be honest, I kind of thought you were just this twitchy little kid, but that's awesome."

Leo smirked down at them, "Hey, guys, I'm made of awesome."

James was still laughing when Leo took off and there was something satisfying about the fact that Harrison's jaw was still dropped. He waved at Jason before he flew to the north. Frank had already headed east. That left Leo and Festus to go west. It felt nice to be in the air again. Once he was high enough in the sky he threw his hands up in the air and let go of a sound that was a hybrid of a laugh and a scream.

Festus was the first one who though they saw something and they ended up swooping down on Sara, who was riding on her own direwolf. The beast was bigger than Leo had expected based off of the Trials by Pain. He could see why Kyrie would name her enormous dog Bear now. Sara had cussed him out before asking what the hell he was riding as he jumped off. He had been homing he had found Kyrie and would have her come back to the camp with him, but instead he decided to ask Sara if she'd found anything.

She got off her wolf, who was named Fang. The wolf and Festus sized each other up before sniffing each other and then beginning to romp around with each other a bit. Sara informed him that she thought that Fang had lost scent of them near a river so they were still looking for where the trail was going to start up again. Leo reported that he hadn't seen anything yet and they parted ways. He tried to make a joke about having a fun ride on her giant puppy, but Fang bared her teeth at Leo and he took that as his queue to go.

They were back in the skies for about an hour before anything else happened. Leo's hands were starting to get cold and he tried holding fireballs in his hands to warm up, but the wind kept whipping the flames out.

Then he saw it. Embedded in the mountainside was an archway made of dull silver. The same metal the Vikings built their ships from. That was enough to draw his attention, but he reached into his tool belt and brought out a pair of binoculars to make sure he saw what he thought he saw. "Let's go, Festus!" he said to the dragon. Next to the arch was a big black direwolf, sleeping contentedly on its back.

They landed in front of the arch and Leo looked at the direwolf that he suspected was Bear. The wolf lazily looked up at him before yawning and rolling back over and going back to sleep.

Leo had different things to worry about though. Once his feet touch the ground a thread of silver shot out and looped around his feet before dragging him towards the archway. He shouted and dug his fingers in the earth trying to slow himself down as a small army of little bearded men funneled out of the archway and surrounded him, some with tiny axes over their heads and others with swords and shields, all of them screaming.

Festus roared indignantly, but he didn't move, probably restrained somehow.

A man, slightly taller and fatter than the rest, ran out of the fray and jumped onto Leo's chest, knocking the wind out of the demigod before putting the edge of his axe against Leo's nose. "Who are you, outsider?" the dwarf demanded, his voice deeper and much more clear than the dwarf that he had seen a few days ago.

"Uh, Leo Valdez," Leo answered, his eyes crossing in the effort to keep the blade in sight.

"Where did you steal this machine?" the dwarf asked.

Festus roared at being called a machine. He was a bit touchy about being called just a machine.

"I didn't steal him. He's my friend. His name is Festus," Leo countered defiantly, "And he doesn't like being called a machine."

The dwarf pushed the axe harder into Leo's nose and scowled at him, "Where did you get this…Festus?"

"I made him," Leo answered. "Well, most of him anyway."

The dwarf took the axe away, but didn't get off Leo's chest, glaring down at him. "You made it?"

"Yeah, I did," Leo said, trying to sit up, but that wasn't happening. "Even ask Festus."

As if to answer his question Festus snorted out a jet of smoke.

After a few beats of silence there was an eruption of cheers. They seemed ecstatic about the idea of someone who built things. After silence fell the biggest dwarf got off of Leo and let the demigod sit up. "We're sorry to have attacked you. Our people have dealt with eons of people stealing our weapons and inventions and taking credit for them. We don't take well to outsiders."

"I can see that. We're good though," Leo said as he sat up. He couldn't deny that he could see why they wouldn't like strangers if that was the case. If people kept taking credit for his creations, then he would probably be pretty mad about it too.

"I'm Bari," the dwarf said. "We don't meet other builders very often. You should consider yourself welcome here."

"Really?" Leo said, unable to keep a smile off his face. It would be awesome to see how these dwarves made things. He almost jumped in and asked for the grand tour when he remembered why he was here. He glanced toward the sleeping wolf, who was barely visible above the heads of the dwarves. "That's a very tempting offer, and I'd love to take you up on it one day. I'm kind of looking for someone right now. I was just wondering if you've seen Kyrie Revira."

There was a murmur exchanged between the dwarves and Bari frowned. "No, I'm afraid I don't know a Kyrie Revira…Valkyrie Evans is down in the forges though."

Leo slapped his forehead, "That's right! Her last name is Evans now. She got married."

Bari laughed, "No, Valkyrie has never been married. We can take you to her, though…if that's really what you want."

Bari's tone confused him. "What do you mean 'if that's really what I want'?" Leo asked.

"She's in a temper right now," Bari answered. "I'm not sure if she wants to see anyone."

Leo considered it. Hell had no fury like a woman scorned, and Kyrie seemed to be scorned. However, it wasn't every day a guy got to see a dwarf forge. In the end, Leo's curiosity got the better of him. "Lead the way, my man."

 _Hey everyone! I just wanted to take a second to thank AnnaUnicorn and Thunderwolf7226 for sticking with this little creation from the beginning. You guys are like my family now! If you like it or not so just bow down and accept your fate. Anyway, thanks for sticking with me. I'd like to thank my other followers for hanging around too, but I don't really know you guys as well. I'm not gonna be crazy and bug you so…ball's in your court you beautiful people. Anyway, I hope you liked the latest chapter. Tah dah!_


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